Plans include building or expandind 120 hydrogen refueling stations in major base areas across South Korea
Hyosung Heavy Industries announced on the 21st that ‘Linde Hydrogen’, a joint venture with Linde Group, held a groundbreaking ceremony for the construction of a hydrogen liquefaction plant at the site of Hyosung Chemical’s Yongyeon plant in Ulsan City and declared its hydrogen business vision.
The event was attended by Hyosung Chairman Cho Hyun-joon and Linde Korea Chairman Seong Baek-seok, Ulsan Mayor Song Cheol-ho, Vice Minister of Trade, Industry and Energy Park Jin-gyu, Hyosung Vice Chairman Cho Hyun-sang, and Hyosung Vice Chairman Lee Sang-woon.
With an annual capacity of 13,000 tons (capable of using 100,000 passenger vehicles), it will be the world’s largest single facility.
The new plant will produce liquefied hydrogen by applying Linde’s hydrogen liquefaction technology and facilities to by-product hydrogen produced at Hyosung Chemical’s Yongyeon Plant. Hydrogen liquefaction technology liquefies high-pressure gaseous hydrogen, and Linde has the highest level of liquid hydrogen production technology.
The produced liquid hydrogen can be used not only for vehicles but also in various mobility fields such as drones, ships, and forklifts, so it is expected to contribute to the development of related industries.
The two companies plan to build liquid hydrogen charging infrastructure by investing an additional 150 billion won in line with the completion of the plant.
For the supply of liquid hydrogen, they decided to develop cooperative partnerships for hydrogen supply, such as building 120 hydrogen stations in major base areas across the country (50 newly built, 70 expanded liquid hydrogen refueling facilities).
Hyosung Heavy Industries entered the CNG charging system business in 2000 and has been supplying hydrogen charging stations since 2008. Currently, it is taking first place with 40% of the domestic hydrogen charging station market share, including building hydrogen charging stations in 15 places across the country.
Chairman Cho Hyun-joon said, “Hyosung Chairman Cho Hyun-joon said, “Hydrogen energy is the foundation of an energy revolution that will change the future of mankind, and we will lead a paradigm shift towards hydrogen energy through continuous investment.”
Hydrogen liquefies at minus 253 degrees Celsius, and liquid hydrogen can reduce its volume by 1/800 compared to gaseous hydrogen, making it easier to store and transport. In the case of gaseous hydrogen, one tank lorry transports 250 kg, whereas liquid hydrogen can transport up to 3,500 kg, which is 14 times larger. In addition, compared to gaseous hydrogen at high pressure, liquid hydrogen is safer because it is in a low pressure state.
The operating efficiency of refueling stations is also expected to improve significantly. When liquid hydrogen charging is introduced, the charging speed will also increase 4 times from 12 minutes to 3 minutes when charging a car (based on 5 kg) when charging gas. In addition, the charging time for large vehicles (25 kg) that require high-capacity hydrogen fuel will be greatly reduced, and the market for large hydrogen vehicles such as hydrogen buses and trucks is expected to expand.
In addition, since liquid hydrogen can reduce the volume of storage containers, it is possible to build a charging station on a site that is 30% of the gaseous hydrogen filling station. Therefore, it is expected to increase the accessibility of hydrogen car users by making it easier to install in downtown areas.
In the industry, it is evaluated that Hyosung’s bold investment in liquid hydrogen has provided an opportunity to lead the revitalization of the hydrogen economy in a difficult economic situation due to COVID.
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