50MW class Daesan hydrogen fuel cell power plant. Photo = Doosan Fuel Cell
The proportion of hydrogen fuel cells in the domestic power market is gradually increasing. Both facility capacity and power transaction volume increased by about 10 times in 8 years.
According to the Power Statistics Information System on the 25th, last year’s domestic fuel cell facility capacity (the amount of power that power generation facilities can produce) recorded 605MW, an increase of 30.4% from the previous year’s 464MW.
The facility capacity, which was only 56MW in 2012, has grown by 38.1% on an annual average, increasing more than 10 times in 8 years.
A fuel cell is a facility that generates electricity through an electrochemical reaction of hydrogen and oxygen. It does not emit toxic substances and can produce stable electricity compared to other renewable energy such as solar and wind power.
Along with the production of electricity by fuel cells, the amount of electricity trade increased. Last year’s fuel cell power trading volume was 3428GWh, a 53.9% increase from 2228GWh last year. It has increased nearly 10 times in 8 years from 374 GWh in 2012.
During the same period, the share of fuel cells in the total amount of renewable energy transactions jumped from 5.7% to 15.3%.
In line with the proliferation of the hydrogen economy, fuel cell power generation facilities of power generation enterprises and private sectors increased rapidly, and fuel cell facility capacity and power transaction volume increased significantly.
Hyundai Motors’ 1MW class hydrogen fuel cell power generation system using vehicle fuel cell technology. Photo = Hyundai Motor Company
A government official explained, “As the overall capacity (production capacity) of the fuel cell power generation facility has increased, the power produced here has flowed into the market and the power transaction volume has also increased.”
In June of last year, Southeast Power and SK E&C completed a 19.8MW-class solid oxide fuel cell (SOFC) power plant in Hwaseong, Gyeonggi Province, and began commercial operation. In July, Hanwha Energy and Doosan Fuel Cell(63,200 +1.12%), The 50MW Daesan Hydrogen Fuel Cell Power Plant, built by Korea East-West Power in the Daesan Industrial Complex in Seosan, Chungcheongnam-do, has started operation.
East-West Power began commercial operation of a 15MW-class fuel cell power plant in Donghae, Gangwon-do last November, and is operating an 8.1MW-class SOFC power plant in Paju, Gyeonggi-do. East-West Power plans to secure and operate about 110MW-class fuel cell power generation capacity.
The speed of fuel cell supply is expected to increase further. On the 20th, Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power agreed to build a 20MW hydrogen fuel cell power plant at the Pohang Blue Valley National Industrial Complex by 2023 after signing an agreement with Gyeongbuk Province and Pohang City on the 20th. Hyundai Motor Company(260,000 +1.17%)The 1MW-class hydrogen fuel cell power generation system to which the vehicle fuel cell technology is applied will also start operating this year.
In the recently confirmed ‘9th Basic Plan for Power Supply and Demand’, the government proposed a fuel cell facility capacity target of 2.6GW by 2030.
Sesung Oh, reporter of Hankyung.com [email protected]
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