Developing Carbon Neutrality｜The government will amend the law next year to support the full use of hydrogen energy supply relying on the mainland and overseas

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Hydrogen refueling station to be operational this year with street cleaning vehicle Four major strategies to promote development in an orderly manner Support EJ Tech

As a clean energy, hydrogen energy is gaining more and more attention around the world. The government recently announced the “Hong Kong Hydrogen Energy Development Strategy” (hereinafter referred to as the “Hydrogen Energy Strategy”) to accelerate the low-carbon transformation. Secretary for Environment and Ecology, Tse Chin-wan, said that in the first half of next year, a proposal to amend the “Gas Safety Ordinance” will be submitted to the Legislative Council to provide a legal basis for regulating the production, storage, transportation, supply and use of hydrogen intended for use as fuel, and plans to prepare to connect with the international hydrogen energy standard certification model by 2027. Tse Chin-wan said that hydrogen energy is a low-carbon energy with development potential. If the opportunity can be seized, it can help Hong Kong move towards carbon neutrality.

Hydrogen refueling station to be operational this year with street cleaning vehicle

The inter-departmental working group on hydrogen energy, which consists of more than 10 policy bureaus and professional departments, has agreed to carry out 14 trial projects. The first hydrogen fuel cell double-decker bus was officially put into passenger service in February this year.

According to the latest schedule, the first local public hydrogen refueling station is under construction and is expected to be put into operation later this year. At that time, the Food and Environmental Hygiene Department will launch a trial program for three hydrogen fuel cell street washers. The MTR Corporation intends to test hydrogen-powered trams in a non-passenger form in the second half of this year.

When talking about supply, Tse Chin-wan admitted that the current supply of hydrogen is relatively limited, but the country and overseas are vigorously increasing hydrogen production capacity. He believes that there will be “no problem” with long-term supply. Hong Kong needs to find cost-effective application scenarios in different experiments.

Compared with “grey hydrogen” which uses natural gas or other fossil fuels as the main raw materials, “green hydrogen” produced from renewable energy is cleaner, but due to the shortage of supply and high prices. Xie Zhanhuan said that the price of “green hydrogen” is 1 to 4 times higher than that of “grey hydrogen”. When production increases in the future, the price of “green hydrogen” may drop. At present, even with government subsidies, it is difficult to promote the large-scale use of “green hydrogen”. Therefore, the current strategy is to use “grey hydrogen” first to formulate regulations, standards and conduct personnel training. When the infrastructure is mature, if “green hydrogen” is price competitive, it will be considered for wider use.

The “Hydrogen Energy Strategy” mentions that hydrogen energy has application potential in transportation, mobile machinery, low-carbon power generation, etc., but it also faces six major challenges in ensuring safety, appropriate technology, infrastructure, cost-effectiveness, talent training and social acceptance. In the future, the four major strategies of “improving regulations”, “setting standards”, “cooperating with the market” and “prudent advancement” will be used to steadily, prudently and orderly create an environment conducive to the development of local hydrogen energy.

Four major strategies to promote development in an orderly manner

Xie Zhanhuan also mentioned that the public may be concerned about the safety of hydrogen, but hydrogen is no more dangerous than LPG. As long as there is good design and standards, the safe use of gas can be ensured. This year, the Environment and Ecology Bureau will strengthen publicity and education to provide more information to the public.

Towngas welcomes the government’s release of the Hydrogen Strategy, believing that the strategy document provides a clear development direction and timetable for Hong Kong’s hydrogen production, hydrogen application scenarios, and regulatory compliance. Towngas will fully cooperate with the government’s hydrogen development strategy, do a good job in hydrogen production and supply, and assist, facilitate and promote hydrogen applications in various areas locally.

Legislative Council member Chan Hak-kan stressed that while paying attention to the environmental benefits of hydrogen energy, Hong Kong should also be encouraged to build a hydrogen energy industry chain to inject new impetus into the economy. Through the research and development, transformation, application and demonstration of hydrogen energy technology, the hydrogen energy industry will become a possible new pillar of Hong Kong’s economy and bring more high-quality employment opportunities.

In addition, the “Hydrogen Energy Strategy” mentioned that Hong Kong has limited land and renewable energy resources, and must promote regional cooperation, overseas investment, and joint development or import of hydrogen energy, give full play to the advantages of “backed by the motherland and connected to the world”, and lead Hong Kong to become a demonstration base for the country’s development of hydrogen energy.

In order to implement the Hydrogen Energy Strategy, the government will expand the functions of the cross-departmental working group. In addition to reviewing and approving future trial projects, it will also need to coordinate the formulation and continuous optimization of hydrogen energy technical standards and guidelines, provide advice on hydrogen energy applications and commercialization paths, and support local infrastructure development and talent training for hydrogen energy.