Clean hydrogen gets green light

Ningxia is also making significant strides in green hydrogen development, with a production capacity of 26,600 metric tons supported by four renewable energy hydrogen projects, according to a statement from Ningxia's development and reform commission, responding to questions from China Daily.

A series of efforts have been made in Ningxia to expand the application of hydrogen, it said.

In the Ningdong Energy Chemical Industry Base, 31 hydrogen-powered vehicles — 25 heavy-duty trucks, two buses and four street sweepers — are in use, the commission said. To date, these heavy-duty trucks have transported 85,000 tons of cargo. Compared to their oil-fueled counterparts, they have mitigated 790 tons of carbon dioxide emissions.

The region has also launched projects to demonstrate the integration of hydrogen into natural gas for consumption, it added.

The commission, however, also noted a series of challenges for green hydrogen development.

"Although the hydrogen energy industry in our country has entered a period of rapid development and is gaining significant attention, the development pathways, key technologies and business models are still largely in the exploration, testing and research stages," it said.

At the national level, it said, there is a lack of unified technical guidelines and safety regulatory standards for various stages of hydrogen development, including production, storage, transportation and utilization.

Additionally, there are no specific measures in place for policies supporting the hydrogen energy industry, resulting in low investment enthusiasm from enterprises, the commission added.

It also highlighted the high cost as another major factor hindering green hydrogen development.

"Hydrogen, when used as an energy source, incurs high costs in production, transportation and application. Reducing the production costs of green hydrogen is essential for advancing the hydrogen energy industry," it noted.

The cost of purified hydrogen produced through coal gasification is typically 11 yuan ($1.5) per kilogram, while hydrogen derived from methanol is priced at 22 yuan per kg, it said. The average cost of hydrogen production through electrolysis using renewable energy sources, however, reaches around 30 yuan per kg.

This sentiment is reinforced by the energy administration of Ejin Horoo Banner in Inner Mongolia, where green hydrogen projects with a collective capacity to annually produce 10,000 tons of green hydrogen have been approved and are currently under construction.