Changwon-si 'Gapo Hydrogen Charging Station' Debuts in Korea... Charges 4 Buses per Hour, Up to 2 Simultaneously

Establishing Korean-Style Hydrogen Refueling Station Standards to Become a Foothold for Exporting Domestic Refueling Systems

On the 14th, the completion ceremony of the Gapo Hydrogen Charging Station is being held in Masanhappo-gu, Changwon-si, Gyeongnam.

[Asia Economy Yeongnam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Lee Seryeong] A hydrogen refueling station was completed in Gapo-dong, Masanhappo-gu, Changwon-si, Gyeongnam, and a completion ceremony was held on the 14th.

The completion ceremony was attended by Jeong Daehwan, Head of the Hydrogen Economy Policy Team at the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy; Park Jaehyun, Director of the Nakdong River Basin Environmental Office; Ha Jongmok, Director of Planning and Coordination at Gyeongsangnam-do; Heo Seongmu, Mayor of Changwon; and Na Seungsik, President of the Korea Automotive Research Institute.

About 50 people, including Baek Jeonghan, Director of Changwon Industry Promotion Agency; Park Yongsuk, Head of Hydrogen Safety Inspection at the Korea Gas Safety Corporation; and Jeong Youngsik, CEO of Beomhan Fuel Cell, were present. The event proceeded in the order of guest introductions, congratulatory speeches, progress reports, performances, and a tour of the hydrogen refueling station.

Changwon City introduced the station as the result of a demonstration project for a hydrogen bus refueling station, jointly promoted with the Korea Automotive Research Institute, aiming to establish a standard model for hydrogen bus refueling stations and increase the localization rate of refueling station equipment.

In April 2020, Changwon was selected as a local government eligible for support from the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy's demonstration project for hydrogen bus refueling stations, and promoted the construction of the hydrogen bus refueling station by providing the site, financial support, and handling construction tasks through the Changwon Industry Promotion Agency.

Gyeongnam Province and Changwon City provided budget support, and the Korea Automotive Research Institute led the project with participation from the Changwon Industry Promotion Agency, Korea Natural Gas Hydrogen Refueling Association, and Gyeongnam Technopark.

The province plans to operate the refueling station using hydrogen buses running actual routes to identify and address issues, and to establish hydrogen bus refueling methods and station operation methods suited to domestic conditions.

The Gapo hydrogen refueling station, built at a total project cost of 19.4 billion KRW, was unveiled as the first phase of the hydrogen bus refueling station demonstration project, marking the first public reveal in Korea.

To demonstrate the performance of the core equipment, the hydrogen compressor, both a domestically developed compressor by Beomhan Fuel Cell, a representative hydrogen company in Changwon, and a German-made compressor were installed.

As a large-capacity hydrogen refueling station with a capacity of 100 kg/h, it will compare the performance of domestic and foreign compressors to verify the performance and reliability of domestic components and establish the standard for Korean-style hydrogen refueling stations.

Mayor Heo Seong-mu of Changwon and others are refueling hydrogen at the Gapo hydrogen charging station.

Unlike existing stations that can refuel 1 to 2 vehicles per hour, the Gapo station can refuel 4 hydrogen buses per hour, comparable to a CNG refueling station, and can simultaneously refuel 2 hydrogen buses.

A city official stated that Beomhan Fuel Cell’s high-performance domestic hydrogen compressor, developed with independent technology, was recently recognized for its technology in Australia.

Requests to participate as a joint partner in global hydrogen refueling infrastructure projects have been received from local energy companies in Australia, and it is expected that the domestic refueling system installed at the Gapo hydrogen refueling station will be exported overseas, starting with Australia.

A Gyeongnam Province official said, “Local companies focused on internal combustion engines will use the completion ceremony of the bus-linked hydrogen refueling station as a stepping stone to transition and expand into future vehicles, and we will help the province’s future vehicle industry lead the global market.”

Mayor Heo Seongmu said, “Since the establishment of the Han Ja-yeon Hydrogen Mobility Research Headquarters in Changwon, this is the first case of research and demonstration of core hydrogen mobility technologies that can be developed domestically,” adding, “We will do our best to catch three rabbits at once: establishing the Korean-style hydrogen refueling station standard, improving convenience for hydrogen bus operation, and exporting domestic refueling systems.”