This photo, taken on June 3, 2020, shows Hyundai Motor Co.’s first charging station for hydrogen-powered commercial vehicles at its Jeonju plant, 240 km south of Seoul.
SEOUL, Aug. 20 (Korea Bizwire) — Hyundai Motor Co., South Korea’s biggest carmaker, said Thursday it has partnered with a think tank and a company in Australia to jointly develop hydrogen production technology.
Hyundai signed an initial contract with the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organization (CSIRO) and Fortescue Metal Group Ltd. (FMG) to collaborate in developing the technology to extract hydrogen from ammonia, the company said in a statement.
Hyundai, CSIRO and FMG will use metal membrane developed by CSIRO to extract hydrogen and deliver it in the form of liquid ammonia to global markets, it said.
In 2018, Hyundai Motor Group announced that it will invest 7.6 trillion won (US$6.4 billion) in hydrogen car-producing facilities and related research and development activities by 2030.
Under the plan, the group plans to churn out 500,000 hydrogen vehicles in 2030.
On the passenger vehicle side, Hyundai sold 9,228 Nexo hydrogen cars — composed of 7,533 units domestically and 1,695 overseas — in global markets from 2018 through June this year.
The move comes as South Korea is pushing to use hydrogen as the main source of energy for cars instead of fossil fuel.
Carmakers have been racing to go eco-friendly amid tightened regulations on emissions of greenhouse gases that are to blame for global warming.
A hydrogen fuel-cell electric vehicle only emits water vapor as it converts stored hydrogen into electricity, which turns the vehicle’s motor.
(Yonhap)
