[수소에너지산업 리더 꿈꾸는 대구경북 〈上〉] The number one hydrogen economy is visible only when infrastructure is increased

As the inauguration of US President-elect Joe Biden approaches, interest in the eco-friendly energy industry is growing more than ever. After taking office, Biden is expected to pursue an energy policy opposite to the Trump administration, which declared the US return to the Paris Climate Agreement and implemented a pro-fossil fuel policy. Countries around the world have been actively setting targets to reduce greenhouse gases since the Paris Climate Convention was adopted in 2015. If the United States participates in the Paris Climate Agreement, Korea’s energy industry paradigm, which is highly dependent on trade with the United States, is expected to change rapidly. In accordance with the Paris Climate Agreement, Korea is also undergoing energy policy transformation such as expansion and supply of new and renewable energy. By 2030, it is obligated to reduce carbon dioxide by 37% compared to the projected emission value, so a new clean energy is needed to replace fossil fuels.

◆Why hydrogen economy?

The government is trying to change the energy industry in general through the’hydrogen economy’. Hydrogen Economy refers to the use of hydrogen as the main energy instead of fossil fuels such as petroleum. In particular, interest in the hydrogen economy is growing due to the influence of the unstable supply and demand of fossil fuels and environmental problems.

The biggest reason the hydrogen economy is attracting attention is that the activation of new and renewable energy is directly connected to securing competitiveness in the overall industry. In recent years, the proposition of’environment’ is recognized as a means of securing national competitiveness. For decades, the European Union (EU) countries have applied strong environmental regulations to diesel vehicles, limiting foreign vehicles such as Korea from entering Europe. Currently, the EU is expected to block European imports of vehicles that emit excessive pollutants by applying’Euro 7′, which is stronger than’Euro 6′, which is the existing diesel vehicle emission regulation stage. Regulations on the environment are leading to the protection of their own industries.

Amid the strengthening of environmental regulations in the international community, the government announced the’Road Map for Activation of the Hydrogen Economy’ in 2019 and presented a vision of “We will make our country a world-class leading hydrogen economy.” △ Achieved the No. 1 market share in the world market for hydrogen vehicles and fuel cells △ Added specific goals to enter a hydrogen producing country from a country with poor fossil fuel resources. In particular, in the case of Daegu and Gyeongbuk, energy-related companies such as Korea Gas Corporation and Korea Hydro and Nuclear Power are concentrated, and the automobile parts industry has an industrial structure close to new and renewable energy, so it is evaluated as the best location for the hydrogen economy to be established.

◆Next-generation energy source without pollution

Hydrogen energy is attracting attention as a next-generation energy source because it rarely causes environmental pollution. Fuel cell vehicles that use hydrogen are all about the water produced by the combination of hydrogen and oxygen. Of course, by-product hydrogen produced in the process of petroleum refining or hydrogen generated by electrolysis of water requires another energy source and may be accompanied by environmental pollution. However, if power generation technology using eco-friendly energy such as wind and solar power is advanced in the long term, it is expected that controversy about environmental pollution will be extinguished.

Another reason for the interest in the hydrogen economy is securing energy sovereignty. Korea suffered from the 1st and 2nd oil shocks in the 1970s and 1980s, causing inconvenience to the people as well as the development of the heavy and chemical industry. In the global energy market, the wind of de-fossil fuels is already strong. According to the research data of the Daekyung Energy Future Forum, the proportion of new and renewable energy in the global energy market is gradually increasing. Looking at the annual average production trend of global energy, coal production decreased by almost 6% from 2015 to 2016. On the other hand, the average annual production of hydrogen during the same period increased by 4%.

The size of the hydrogen energy market is still growing. According to the Daegu Gyeongbuk Institute, the global annual production of hydrogen is 65 million tons, and the hydrogen production market is expected to reach $152.09 billion by 2021, with an annual average growth rate of 5.2% between 2016 and 2021. .

Already in Korea, 1.64 million tons of hydrogen are produced annually in Ulsan and Yeosu. Most of the hydrogen production is made up of by-product hydrogen generated in the production process of petroleum and chemical companies.

It is also encouraging that the hydrogen ecosystem is starting to emerge, such as the launch of hydrogen cars in Korea. Korea has already successfully mass-produced the world’s first hydrogen car in 2013. Domestic automakers are already spurring the production of hydrogen passenger cars and commercial vehicles, and hydrogen charging stations are being installed in cities and highways across the country, including Daegu.

◆Hydrogen Economy and the Future of Daegu and Gyeongbuk

Daegu and Gyeongbuk Province are busy with the movement to settle the hydrogen economy. Although it is evaluated that Daegu-Gyeongbuk’s hydrogen economy is less competitive than Ulsan, where a large-scale petrochemical complex is located, efforts to close the gap are continuing.

Daegu-Gyeongbuk’s strength is that major universities in the region have abundant human resources to take charge of R&D, and that Korea Gas Corporation and Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power are located in the region. In particular, Daegu has the headquarters of the Korea Gas Corporation, and it is being discussed as the best place to foster the natural gas-based hydrogen industry in a long-term and stable supply environment of natural gas. In addition, according to the long-term management plan announced by Korea Gas Corporation in 2018, it is known that KOGAS will make large-scale investments in hydrogen and fuel cells by 2025.

Local energy experts point out that diffusion of the hydrogen ecosystem is more important than anything else for the establishment of the hydrogen economy. Dr. Jeong Gun-woo of the Daegu Gyeongbuk Research Institute emphasized, “It is necessary to build a hydrogen industry ecosystem to revitalize the local hydrogen economy.” According to Dr. Chung, there are over 100 local companies and institutions that produce, store, and use hydrogen, but there is still a long way to go.

According to the Daegu-Gyeongbuk Research Institute, local hydrogen-using companies are purchasing most of the hydrogen from hydrogen producing areas at a distance. Ulsan, the closest hydrogen production site to Daegu, is more than 100km away and the hydrogen pipeline is not connected, causing a large cost burden compared to the manufacturing cost. It is analyzed that improvement is urgent as the aspect of hydrogen-using companies also covers various fields such as automobile parts, semiconductor equipment, steel, and metal.

Even in such a situation, it is encouraging that the creation of a regional hydrogen economy ecosystem continues to progress. Daegu City completed the Seongseo Charging Station, Daegu’s No. 1 hydrogen charging station, in Galsan-dong, Dalseo-gu, last August, and started to expand the supply of hydrogen vehicles. Daegu City also established the’Basic Plan for Supplying Hydrogen Vehicles and Building Hydrogen Charging Stations’ in May last year, and announced plans to supply 1,000 hydrogen vehicles and build 4 hydrogen charging stations by 2022.

In Gyeongbuk Province, the hydrogen fuel cell power generation cluster project in 2019 was selected as a hydrogen fusion complex demonstration project by the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy, and the establishment of a hydrogen ecosystem in the region is in earnest.

Reporter Lim Hoon [email protected]