Hydrogen-powered trucks in China to cost less than their diesel peers by 2027: Refire Group
- China’s hydrogen economy is currently moving from a policy-driven one to a market-driven one, providing a huge boost to the industry: Refire CEO
- The country has reduced the manufacturing cost of hydrogen fuel cell systems from over 30,000 yuan per kilowatt in 2015 to below 4,000 yuan now, says CEO Robin Lin
Hydrogen-powered trucks are expected to reach life-cycle cost parity with their fossil-fuel-burning peers in China by 2027 even without the aid of subsidies, a milestone which the world’s biggest producer and consumer of the zero-emission energy source, seeks to achieve eight years ahead of Europe.
This will push forward the country’s ambition to dominate the market for hydrogen fuel cells in the transport sector as Beijing’s enabling environment starts paying off, an industry executive said.
Life cycle costs are those associated with a product starting from its initial cost to its end of life and parity between hydrogen cells and conventional diesel engines is expected to be achieved in Europe only by 2035, according to a study by the International Council on Clean Transportation, a non-profit independent research group.
“China has developed a world-leading industry in commercial vehicle applications for hydrogen fuel cell technology, with enterprises ranging from upstream raw materials to downstream products over the past decade,” said Robin Lin, chairman and president of Refire Group, a Chinese supplier of hydrogen fuel cell technologies.
China’s hydrogen economy is currently moving from a policy-driven one to a market-driven one, providing a huge boost to the entire industry, Lin said in an interview in Hong Kong last week.
