I. Policy Review: Hydrogen Policy Dynamics
(1) Domestic Policies
Hebei Provincial Department of Industry and Information Technology:Issued the Notice on Launching the 2025 Recommendation Work for the Catalogue of Advanced Green and Low-Carbon Technologies and Equipment in the Industrial Sector. The document states that the recommended scope includes low-carbon energy transition technologies such as clean low-carbon hydrogen production and application, high-efficiency ESS, industrial green micro-grids and other renewable-energy-consumption technologies; high-efficiency utilisation of waste heat and pressure, cascade utilisation of system energy, electricity substitution and other multi-energy complementary technologies.
Guangzhou, Guangdong Province:Issued the Notice on Organising the 2025 Fuel-Cell Vehicle Demonstration Operation Subsidy Application under the Hydrogen Industry Development Fund. The document specifies subsidies for fuel-cell vehicles connected to national, provincial and municipal demonstration information platforms, differentiated by car model: light-duty hydrogen fuel-cell vehicles (gross vehicle weight <4.5 mt) receive an operating subsidy of up to 0.5 yuan/km for annual mileage, rounded up to 1 km, capped at 20,000 yuan per vehicle per year; medium-duty hydrogen fuel-cell vehicles (≥4.5 mt and <12 mt) receive up to 1 yuan/km, capped at 40,000 yuan per vehicle per year; heavy-duty hydrogen fuel-cell vehicles (≥12 mt) receive up to 2.5 yuan/km, capped at 100,000 yuan per vehicle per year.
Chengdu, Sichuan Province:Issued the Notice on Organising the 2025 Application for Advanced Energy Industry Projects in Chengdu. The document states that green-electricity-to-hydrogen projects are supported: electrolytic hydrogen enterprises with a designed capacity ≥500 Nm³/h will receive an electricity subsidy of 0.15–0.2 yuan/kWh for actual electrolytic hydrogen consumption, with an annual cap of 20 million yuan. The subsidy is co-funded by the city and the district/county where the enterprise is located, with the sharing ratio following the basic ratio for municipal major industrialisation projects.
Xiamen, Fujian Province:Released the Xiamen Hydrogen Industry High-Quality Development Action Plan (2025–2027). The Action Plan introduces measures in four areas: creating a hydrogen technology innovation hub, building an advanced hydrogen manufacturing base, orderly developing hydrogen demonstration scenarios, and comprehensively optimising the hydrogen industry environment. To build the innovation hub, the plan calls for breakthroughs in core technologies, continuous R&D across the entire “production-storage-transport-refuelling-use” chain, and the establishment of a national-level innovation platform at the Tan Kah Kee Innovation Laboratory, while supporting all innovators in developing standards for the entire hydrogen industry chain.
Policy Interpretation:
Hebei Provincial Department of Industry and Information Technology, Notice on Launching the 2025 Recommendation Work for the Catalogue of Advanced Green and Low-Carbon Technologies and Equipment in the Industrial Sector:The policy explicitly includes “clean low-carbon hydrogen production and application” in the recommended scope, directly guiding enterprises to focus on core technologies for hydrogen production, storage, transport and utilisation. Through the catalogue mechanism, projects are steered toward key parks to create regional synergies.
Guangzhou, Guangdong Province, Notice on Organising the 2025 Fuel-Cell Vehicle Demonstration Operation Subsidy Application:Subsidy rates favour heavy-duty vehicles, driving hydrogen adoption in logistics and precisely matching high-emission scenarios such as long-haul transport and port logistics. The mileage-based mechanism encourages efficient vehicle use, improves hydrogen economics, and ties subsidies to actual kilometres travelled, avoiding the “purchase without operation” loophole.
Chengdu, Sichuan Province, Notice on Organising the 2025 Application for Advanced Energy Industry Projects:Chengdu’s 2025 hydrogen policy creates a “production-refuelling-utilisation” support system through targeted subsidies and scenario opening, expected to boost social investment by more than 2 billion yuan and expand the hydrogen industry scale by over 20%. The policy not only consolidates Chengdu’s national leadership in hydrogen storage and refuelling equipment but also accelerates large-scale hydrogen applications in transport and ESS by lowering green-hydrogen costs and improving the refuelling network.
Xiamen, Fujian Province, Xiamen Hydrogen Industry High-Quality Development Action Plan (2025–2027):Xiamen’s hydrogen policy drives development through four dimensions—technology, industry, scenarios and environment—already achieving national leadership in electrolytic hydrogen and solid-state hydrogen storage, with diversified demonstration scenarios speeding up commercial deployment.
(2) International Policies
European Commission:In September, the Commission officially launched a joint hydrogen procurement platform, aggregating demand from 27 countries to create large-scale orders aimed at lowering green-hydrogen procurement costs and attracting international suppliers. Covering the entire green-hydrogen production and transport chain, the platform will synergise with the IPCEI Hy2Infra programme (6.9 billion euros for pipeline construction). The move directly counters the US Inflation Reduction Act, leveraging collective bargaining to enhance European green-hydrogen competitiveness and is expected to cut electrolyser costs by 40% before 2030.
European Commission:On 24 September, the Commission released the Delegated Act on Low-Carbon Hydrogen, clarifying carbon-emission accounting methods for different hydrogen production pathways and requiring green-hydrogen production to use directly connected renewable electricity that meets temporal and geographical matching criteria. The Act will influence investment directions for hydrogen projects within the EU and may become the prototype for global green-hydrogen trade standards.
US: In September, the US Department of Energy (DOE) announced $8 billion in funding for regional green hydrogen hubs under the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act.
Japan: The Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (METI) unveiled the National Green Hydrogen Strategy in September, aiming to achieve an annual capacity of 3 million mt by 2040. It plans to provide subsidies for international green hydrogen procurement through a "hydrogen bank" mechanism. The strategy particularly emphasizes cooperation with countries such as Australia and Indonesia to promote the construction of overseas green hydrogen supply chains.
Australia: The Department of Climate Change released a new strategy on September 13, setting a target to produce 15 million mt of renewable hydrogen by 2050, with phased capacity planning: 500,000-1.5 million mt by 2030, and 3-5 million mt by 2035. The strategy includes 34 actions, such as establishing a Hydrogen Production Tax Incentive (HPTI) and an origin guarantee program, focusing on supporting export-oriented industries like green ammonia and hydrogen-based steel.
Policy Interpretation:
1. Accelerated concentration of R&D and industrial investment in leading countries: The "hydrogen bank" supply chain system being built through cooperation between Japan, Australia, and Indonesia will further strengthen the green hydrogen trade network in the Asia-Pacific region. This "tripolar competition" may lead to regional segmentation of the global hydrogen industry chain, and China needs to accelerate its layout in "soft infrastructure" areas such as technical standards and certification systems.
2. Breakthroughs in storage and transportation technology become the focus of competition: A Japanese team has developed a 90°C solid-state hydrogen battery technology, which could disrupt existing storage and transportation models. Although China has made breakthroughs in organic liquid hydrogen storage technology (reducing costs by 70%), it still needs to catch up in core areas such as liquid hydrogen insulation materials and solid-state hydrogen storage media.
II. Corporate Dynamics: Project Signings and Technology Cooperation
A. Project Intelligence
Vision Motor: Vision Motor delivered 200 hydrogen fuel cell light trucks to Baoding. A ceremony for the centralized delivery and operation of hydrogen-powered vehicles for school food distribution and coal transportation was held at People's Square in Baoding.
Sakase Seisakusho: Shandong Sakase Seisakusho Hydrogen Energy Co., Ltd. reached a deep cooperation agreement with a well-known Japanese company, providing 100 standard cubic meters of integrated hydrogen production equipment to jointly build the overseas hydrogen energy market.
Qingneng Co., Ltd.: Signed a strategic cooperation agreement with Indian engineering giant Bharat Heavy Electricals Ltd (BHEL). Over the next 10 years, both parties will leverage their respective technological and resource advantages to jointly promote the commercial application of hydrogen-powered rail vehicles in the Indian market.
Sany Hydrogen Energy: Successfully won the bid for the Zhongrong New Energy Co., Ltd. project, which aims to produce 1.8 million mt of fine chemicals and 4,000 units of battery fuel hydrogen annually.
Yuntao Hydrogen Energy: Restarting the 2025 Hydrogen Refueling Station Equipment Procurement Project. According to the tender announcement, this tender procures 3 sets of 2,000 kg stationary hydrogen refueling equipment, 3 sets of 1,000 kg stationary hydrogen refueling equipment, and 3 sets of 1,000 kg skid-mounted hydrogen refueling equipment, covering 9 hydrogen refueling stations, with the budget amount remaining at 30.18 million yuan.
Guangdong Qingneng New Energy Technology Co., Ltd. and Foshan Cole Information Technology Co., Ltd.: Guangdong Qingneng New Energy Technology Co., Ltd. won Lot 1 of the hydrogen vehicle (light refrigerated truck) procurement package (200 light fuel cell refrigerated trucks), with a winning unit price of 560,000 yuan per unit; Foshan Cole Information Technology Co., Ltd. won Lot 2 (150 light fuel cell refrigerated trucks), with a winning unit price of 562,000 yuan per unit.
Lu'an City: Lu'an City's 2025 Hydrogen Fuel Cell Bus Procurement Project issued a public tender announcement. According to the announcement, 20 hydrogen fuel cell 8.5-meter series buses are to be procured, with a budget amount of 29.8 million yuan.
Shaanxi Hydrogen Energy Industry Development Co., Ltd.: Shaanxi Hydrogen Energy Industry Development Co., Ltd.'s Yulin Zero-Carbon Industrial Park Hydrogen Energy (Hydrogen Production) Demonstration Project issued a Compressor Unit Procurement Project [Section 1: Hydrogen Compressor (Liquid-Driven)] (Second Call) - Tender Announcement.
(II) Enterprise Dynamics
Weishi Energy: Weishi Energy and Brazil's Institute of Technological Research (Instituto de Pesquisas Tecnológicas, abbreviated IPT) officially announced the establishment of a strategic cooperation relationship. The two parties will conduct joint testing and research focusing on the safety, reliability, and feasibility of hydrogen energy applications in heavy-duty vehicles.
Trina Green Hydrogen: Successfully joined the European H2Med Alliance, contributing to the accelerated implementation of the European hydrogen corridor.
Meijin Energy: Showcased core technological achievements in the hydrogen energy industry at the 2025 Energy Industry Expo.
Vision Group: Vision Group's subsidiary Vision Hydrogen Energy reached a supply cooperation agreement with Amazon Web Services (AWS) for hydrogen energy storage power generation systems, and will provide advanced hydrogen energy solutions for Amazon's new data center in Bangalore, India.
Rockcheck Group: Wang Xin, Standing Committee Member of the CPC Committee and Deputy Division Commander of the 14th Division of the Xinjiang Production and Construction Corps in Kunyu City, visited Rockcheck Group and held discussions with Zhang Lihua, Director, Vice President of Rockcheck Group, and Chairman of Rockcheck New Energy Group, on deepening cooperation in the hydrogen energy field and jointly expanding industrial development space.
Cangzhou Gangjie Hydrogen Energy Technology Co., Ltd.: Cangzhou Gangjie Hydrogen Energy Technology Co., Ltd. was established. The company is 51% owned by Cangzhou Jiaofa Jieshuo New Energy Development Co., Ltd. and 49% owned by Rongcheng Ganglian Hydrogen Energy Technology (Cangzhou) Co., Ltd.
III. Technological Progress: Breakthroughs in Efficiency and Cost
(A) Hydrogen Production, Storage, and Transportation
Foshan Xianhu Laboratory: The industry's first "zero-carbon ammonia-fueled aluminum billet heating furnace" for aluminum extrusion production was launched at Foshan Xianhu Laboratory. This equipment enables zero-carbon operation in the aluminum processing heating stage, marking a significant step forward in the green transformation of China's aluminum processing industry.
Shougang Group Co., Ltd.: Successfully developed a full series of hydrogen pipeline steels (B/X42/X52/X60/X65MH), overcoming six key technical bottlenecks such as hydrogen embrittlement damage and low-temperature toughness, and established a relatively comprehensive product matrix for hydrogen pipeline steels.
Bao Shishun (Qinhuangdao) Steel Pipe Co., Ltd., a subsidiary of CNPC: Successfully trial-produced various specifications of "longitudinal submerged arc welded pipes" (D610x12.7/14.3mm, material/X60MH) for pure hydrogen transportation.
State Power Investment Corporation (SPIC) Central Research Institute: The hydrogen storage and transportation team of the Advanced Low-Carbon Institute developed a large-diameter (DN150), high-pressure (10MPa) non-metallic flexible hydrogen pipeline, which achieved safe and stable operation for 30 days on a test platform.
Offshore Oil Engineering Special Equipment Branch: The self-developed design achievement of a "cryogenic liquid hydrogen storage tank" for deep-sea floating platforms received the Approval in Principle (AIP) certificate from the China Classification Society (CCS), indicating that its safety and reliability fully comply with CCS specifications.
Dalian Institute of Chemical Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences: Made a breakthrough in alkaline electrolyzer membrane technology: developed an ultra-thin (20μm) composite separator, increasing the electrolysis system efficiency to 85% (LHV) with a lifespan exceeding 60,000 hours.
(B) Fuel Cell Technology/Product Developments
Qingneng Co., Ltd.: Launched a 3MW fuel cell power generation system applicable for backup power scenarios in data centers.
CIMC ENRIC: Its subsidiary Jingmen Hongtu Company's first set of marine methanol supply skids successfully passed certification from the China Classification Society and obtained the CCS product certificate.
Hydrogen Green Motion New Energy (Wuhan) Co., Ltd.: A mini landscaping sprinkler truck, equipped with a hydrogen internal combustion engine 2.0T power system and a built-in mini PEM hydrogen production device.
Liaoning General Aviation Research Institute: China's first four-seat electric-electric hybrid aircraft, the RX4M, independently developed by the team of Academician Yang Fengtian at the Liaoning General Aviation Research Institute of Shenyang Aerospace University, successfully completed its maiden flight at Shenyang Faku Caihu Airport, contributing the "China Solution" to the development of global electric aircraft.
Dongfang Hydrogen Energy: Obtained a patent for a system that increases the humidity of air entering the stack in the field of fuel cell technology.
Georgia Power: Announced the successful completion of the second hydrogen-natural gas hybrid fuel experiment for the M501GAC natural gas turbine, developed in cooperation with Mitsubishi Power, under both partial and full load conditions.
The US Hydrogen Energy Association (DoE) is leading the establishment of the "Hydrogen Refueling Station Compatibility Alliance": To standardize the interface of 70 MPa hydrogen refueling guns, eliminate hydrogen refueling protocol barriers for automakers such as Toyota, Hyundai, and Nikola, and promote interoperability of the hydrogen refueling network.
