China's first hydrogen-powered ship completed its maiden voyage on the Yangtze River in the city of Yichang in Central China's Hubei Province on October 11, 2023. Named Three Gorges Hydrogen Boat No.1, the ship is expected to replace 103.16 tons of fuel oil and reduce carbon dioxide emissions by 343.67 tons each year. Photo: VCG

China's investment into green hydrogen industry, which produces hydrogen using renewable energy, has reached 300 billion yuan ($42.04 billion) year-to-date, the state broadcaster CCTV reported on Monday.

Supportive government policies are behind the drive, as Chinese localities roll out specific measures to boost the development of the sector, which is considered to create significant value in building a low-carbon future.

China has the largest number of hydrogen refilling stations in the world, and the construction of pipelines to transport hydrogen over long distances is being planned, according to the CCTV report.

In the first nine months of this year, the number of green hydrogen projects already functioning, under construction, or pending approvals for construction reached 57, with a total investment volume of 300 billion yuan, the CCTV report said.

As the world explores more low-carbon solutions and China is pursuing the dual goals of carbon peaking and neutrality, trucks, locomotives, ships powered by hydrogen fuel cells are entering the trial phase.

Jing Chunmei, an expert from the China Center for International Economic Exchanges, said that green hydrogen only accounted for less than 1 percent of all China's existing hydrogen output. But the ratio is expected to jump to 15 percent by 2030 while constant technological innovation and economy of scale will drive down cost of hydrogen production to 20 yuan per kilogram from the current 25 yuan per kilogram currently, Jing said.

The ramping up of green hydrogen production has significance in China's exports of hydrogen-based chemicals such as synthetic ammonia as key exports market including the EU is raising the environmental bar.

China Oil and Gas Pipeline Network Corporation successfully staged a blast experiment for pipeline carrying a mixture of hydrogen and natural gas, catching scientific data and paving way for future application to use the nation's existing pipeline network to transport hydrogen, the CCTV report said.

In August, China released its first national-level construction guideline for the standards of the hydrogen energy industry chain, in a bid to implement the national deployment of the industry and put in place a relatively complete hydrogen energy industry development system by 2025.

The country's hydrogen energy market is expected to reach 43 million tons by 2030, according to an estimate from the China Hydrogen Alliance.

Green hydrogen means hydrogen derived from electricity generated from green and renewable energy sources, such as wind and solar power.

In earlier November, South China's Guangdong Province issued a guideline, calling for the acceleration of the development of hydrogen industry and expanding the scale of the industry to 300 billion by 2027, according to media reports.

Industry insiders noted that China's hydrogen industry is rapidly expanding and now leading the world in output, and the Chinese market is both dynamic in hydrogen production and application.