The government of Shanghai has released a policy package to support developing the Lingang free trade zone into a major hub for the hydrogen industry.
The package, published on 26 August, includes plans to build: pilot facilities for producing green hydrogen using wind and solar power; port terminals for transporting the fuel; and stations for fuelling future fleets of hydrogen-powered vehicles. It also includes measures to attract fuel cell electric vehicle manufacturers to set up bases in Lingang, and initiate demonstration projects for hydrogen-powered trucks and buses to operate in the zone.
The stated intention of the package is for Shanghai to cultivate a robust hydrogen industry supply chain, all the way from upstream hydrogen producers to downstream users. By 2025, a fuel cell battery industry worth 20 billion yuan (US$3 billion) is expected to call Lingang home.
Notably, the 18-point package includes an item to set up a “hydrogen trading platform.” This will not only facilitate the trading of hydrogen itself but potentially also the carbon credits coming out of the use of green hydrogen and electricity from hydrogen energy storage projects. The national carbon market allows the trading of a limited amount of China certified emission reductions (CCER). Shanghai’s hydrogen industry planners are eyeing up the opportunity to tap into the market for green hydrogen to earn extra benefits from selling such credits.
A hydrogen industry development fund will also be set up to provide much-needed financing for corporates along the hydrogen supply chain to innovate technologies, develop new equipment and scale up operations.
Read our earlier reporting on the hydrogen rivalry between China and Europe.