China Imports $550 Million in Hydrogen Industry Components from Korea
KOTRA Report Highlights Potential for Korean Companies in China’s Hydrogen Market
As China’s hydrogen industry grows rapidly with policy support, trade volume with Korea is also expanding, leading to analysis that cooperation opportunities between the two countries will increase in the future.
KOTRA published the “China’s Hydrogen Industry Ecosystem and Cooperation Plans for Korean Companies” report on Jan. 13, presenting China’s hydrogen industry policy trends and market outlook, promising cooperation fields, and considerations for market entry. As of the end of 2024, China’s hydrogen production and consumption scale is approximately 36.5 million tons, the world’s largest. The Chinese government plans to gradually foster hydrogen fuel cell vehicle distribution and hydrogen utilization industries by 2030READ the latest news shaping the hydrogen market at Hydrogen CentralREAD the latest news shaping the hydrogen market at Hydrogen Central
According to China’s General Administration of Customs, China’s imports of eight major hydrogen industry components and equipment from Korea (high-pressure compressors, high-pressure sealing valves, high-pressure storage tanks, etc.) in 2024 reached $550 million (approximately 808.4 billion won), a 10% increase from the previous year. Import volumes of membrane electrode assemblies and circulation pumps from Korea have increased for two consecutive years, and import scale is expected to expand further. China is evaluated as having a large-scale hydrogen industry ecosystem and demonstration infrastructure across the entire value chain of hydrogen production, storage, transportation, and utilization.
The report projected that cooperation opportunities between hydrogen companies of both countries will expand as a structure where Korean companies with world-class technology in fuel cells, hydrogen vehicles, and core materials can create mutual synergy.
KOTRA stated,
The hydrogen industry is a field that can contribute to industrial structure advancement and carbon neutrality achievement for both Korea and China, and can become a new trade and investment cooperation target for both countries,
Adding,
We plan to contribute to Korean companies’ entry into China and industrial cooperation through hydrogen industry information provision, promising project development, linkage with government cooperation projects, and corporate business matching.
Meanwhile, the report also presented matters that companies entering the Chinese hydrogen market should consider from institutional and technical aspects. It explained that companies should be mindful of China’s electrolyzer and hydrogen system safety and standard systems, qualification requirements for local project bidding, and risks that may arise during collaboration with Chinese companies. It also proposed the necessity of preparing multi-layered protective measures against such risks.
Hwang Jae-won, KOTRA China regional director, emphasized,
China’s hydrogen industry is a growth market that simultaneously meets policy foundation and market scale,
Adding,
If our companies’ technological competitiveness combines with China’s large-scale demonstration environment, we can create expansion cooperation models for the global hydrogen market.
READ the latest news shaping the hydrogen market at Hydrogen Central
China Imports $550 Million in Hydrogen Industry Components from Korea, source
