China

China Flag
GH2 Country Portal – China

Green hydrogen vision

Already the world’s largest hydrogen producer, China has the potential to use green hydrogen to help meet its energy security and climate goals by reducing emissions from key industries. With world’s largest renewable power capacity1, the government aims to establish a comprehensive hydrogen industry spanning transportation, energy storage and industrial sectors and "significantly improve" the portion of green hydrogen in China's energy consumption by 2035. (Green Hydrogen Energy Plan, 2022) 

China's production cost of green hydrogen will be competitive with steam methane reforming and coal gasification with carbon capture by 2025 and 2030 respectively - China Hydrogen Alliance 

National Strategy

In March 2022 the Chinese government published a plan on the development of green hydrogen energy for the period of 2021-2035. The strategy sets out five goals for 2035:  

  1. Build a centralised innovation platform to strengthen research and develop disruptive green hydrogen technologies. 

  2. Promote the construction of hydrogen energy infrastructure, production, storage, and transportation. 

  3. Promote the use of hydrogen in transport, energy storage, and heavy industries. 

  4. Establish and improve policies on hydrogen infrastructure construction, electricity prices for green hydrogen production.  

  5. Establish standards for hydrogen quality, safety, infrastructure, and applications.

Almost all provinces and regions in China have included hydrogen in their development plans, and more than 120 green hydrogen projects are under development.

 

National Strategy

Capacity and capacity target

• The Green Hydrogen Energy Plan set a target of 200,00 tonnes annual production by 2025.   
• The electrolyser capacity target is 80 GW by 2030, according to the state-backed think-tank the China Hydrogen Alliance.  
• The government set two production price targets of $4 per kg by 2025 and $2.4 per kg by 2030 

Impact Targets

  • The announced plan promises 50,000 hydrogen-fuelled vehicles on roads by 2025. 

  • The plan will enable a carbon dioxide emission reduction of 1 million to 2 million tonnes per year.  

Policy innovations

-

Financing

-

Government green hydrogen lead

  • National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC) 

  • The National Energy Administration 

  • China Hydrogen Alliance 

Comment

China is well-placed to become an early significant producer and user of green hydrogen.  

With its vast production of photovoltaic cells and equipment to produce renewable energy, plans for significant production of electrolysers combined with its desire to reduce the import of oil and gas, makes it likely that China will become a green hydrogen giant.