POSCO, Hyundai unveil hydrogen value chains at H2 MEET 2023

Hydrogen-fueled cars, drones and energy systems were unveiled on Wednesday during South Korea’s largest hydrogen industry exhibition H2 MEET, where 303 companies from 18 countries showed off their clean energy technologies.

Hyundai Motor Group set up the largest exhibition booth measuring 1,125 square meters for H2 MEET 2023 to boast its hydrogen ecosystem from production to transport and utilization.

H2 MEET stands for H₂ Mobility Energy Environment Technology. During the event, the carmaker unveiled a new hydrogen-fueled electric garbage truck.

It also presented some hydrogen business models, for which it is collaborating with sister companies to achieve carbon neutrality in the process of producing, supplying and using hydrogen.

Hyundai Engineering & Construction Co., Hyundai-Rotem Co. and Hyundai Engineering Co. joined forces with the carmaker to develop the business models.

POSCO Holdings Inc.'s exhibition booth also attracted the eyes of visitors with a diorama of its green hydrogen project in Oman. It is the holding company of steelmaker POSCO Co. and electric vehicle battery materials producer POSCO Future M Co.

Last June, a consortium led by POSCO Holdings and Samsung Engineering Co. signed a 47-year contract with Oman worth an estimated $7 billion-$8 billion to build and operate green hydrogen production plants in the Middle Eastern nation.

Hanwha Group showcased an integrated value chain that produces, stores and transports hydrogen to fuel plants and manufactures hydrogen fuel cells.

During the trade show, Hanwha Corp., Hanwha Energy Corp., Hanwha Solutions Corp. and Hanwha Impact Corp. exhibited water electrolysis technology used to obtain hydrogen by decomposing water with electricity produced from renewable energy such as solar and wind power.

Hanwha Solutions also unveiled a high-pressure tank to stably store and transport hydrogen, as well as a drone powered by a hydrogen fuel cell system.

Aircraft components maker Hanwha Aerospace Co. exhibited a 100 kilowatt-class lightweight hydrogen fuel cell that can be applied to urban air traffic (UAM) and shipbuilder Hanwha Ocean Co. displayed a 3,000-ton submarine model equipped with a hydrogen fuel cell system.

Kolon Industries Inc. unveiled a polymer electrolyte membrane (PEM), membrane electrode assembly (MEA) and moisture control device for hydrogen fuel cell vehicles.

During the trade show, Kolon Industries and Kolon Plastics Inc. signed a memorandum of understanding on the supply and use of renewable energy with the South Korean unit of RWE, Germany's largest power generation company.

H2 MEET 2023 is its fourth annual event and marked its largest-ever gathering, with participants up 26% compared to last year.

Write to Nan-Sae Kim at binthere@hankyung.com
 
Yeonhee Kim edited this article.