Korean LPG firm E1 starts hydrogen fueling business

South Korea’s major liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) distributor E1 Corp. made inroads into the hydrogen industry by setting up the eco-friendly automobile fuel stations in the country with plans of production and imports.

E1 announced on Monday it has established hydrogen fueling stations at three LPG stations it operates in Seoul and surrounding cities.

The unit of a local conglomerate LS Group has been seeking to build hydrogen stations at the gas distribution centers in the metropolitan area where the hydrogen supply fell short of demand. E1 set up those hydrogen stations within one year, shorter than usually 18 months, with support from the Ministry of Environment and local governments.

E1 plans to increase the hydrogen stations not only in the metropolitan area but also in other major cities.

“We will expand hydrogen fueling stations including those for commercial vehicles,” said E1 Chairman Koo Ja-yong at an opening ceremony for a station in Gwacheon, a city next to Seoul. The Gwacheon station is also equipped with electric vehicle charging facilities.

The company aims to extend the hydrogen business into production based on its capabilities in the LPG sector while establishing a hydrogen value chain including imports of liquefied hydrogen and ammonia, as well as their storage and distribution.

Write to Ik-Hwan Kim at lovepen@hankyung.com
Jongwoo Cheon edited this article.