Samsung, Hyundai, others to use hydrogen buses for commute

Samsung Electronics Co., Hyundai Motor Co., SK Hynix Inc., POSCO Holdings Inc., SK E&S, POSCO E&C and SK Siltron have agreed to replace their employees' leased buses for commuting with hydrogen-powered buses.

The Ministry of Environment and seven companies held on Thursday a signing ceremony for the "Conversion of Employee Commuting Buses to Hydrogen Buses by Leading Companies in Environment, Society and Governance" agreement at The Westin Josun Seoul in downtown Seoul.

The National Association of Lease Bus Transport Business Cooperatives and 12 local governments also participated in the event. 

Under the agreement, Hyundai Motor will produce hydrogen fuel cell-powered intercity buses, the world's first high-speed large buses. These buses can travel up to 635 km on a single charge and have a charging time of only 10-20 minutes.

SK E&S will supply liquid hydrogen produced from its Incheon liquefied hydrogen plant to hydrogen buses by the end of this year. The plant can produce up to 30,000 tons of liquid hydrogen annually, and SK E&S also plans to build a charging infrastructure.

All 283 hydrogen buses in operation nationwide until last year were used for city buses. The Ministry of Environment plans to support the conversion of 250 corporate commuting buses to hydrogen ones by 2023 and 2,000 by 2026.

Write to Hyung-Kyu Kim at khk@hankyung.com