"Demonstrating Hydrogen Forklift Operating for 5 Hours with 5-Minute Charging"

Hyundai Mobis Leads Government and Local Government-Sponsored Demonstration Project

A worker is operating a hydrogen forklift at the Hyundai Glovis Ulsan KD Center, where the hydrogen mobility demonstration project is underway.

[Asia Economy Reporter Choi Dae-yeol] Hyundai Mobis' independently developed mobile fuel cell powerpack will be deployed in hydrogen mobility demonstration projects led by the government and local governments. As efforts are being made to increase the utilization of hydrogen as a power source across industries including commercial vehicles and construction machinery, Hyundai Mobis is expected to take the lead in this field.

On the 30th, the company announced that a kickoff event was held to start the hydrogen forklift demonstration project, attended by officials from the Ministry of SMEs and Startups, Ulsan Metropolitan City, Hyundai Genuine, and Hyundai Glovis. This demonstration project is hosted by the Ministry of SMEs and Startups and Ulsan City and is being conducted at Hyundai Glovis Ulsan KD Center.

The 5-ton class medium-sized hydrogen forklift used in this project was jointly developed by Hyundai Mobis and Hyundai Genuine, the intermediate holding company of Hyundai Heavy Industries Group's construction machinery division. It supports rapid charging within 5 minutes and can be used continuously for 5 hours on a single charge. Although hydrogen production is not yet sufficient and charging infrastructure is not fully established, its quick charging capability makes it a suitable power source in the mid to long term.

The Glovis KD Center, where the demonstration project is taking place, is located within the Ulsan Hydrogen Green Mobility Regulatory Free Zone. Mobile hydrogen refueling is available. Through demonstration operation monitoring managed by Hyundai Glovis, driving data and improvement points are transmitted in real-time to Hyundai Mobis' Uiwang Research Center.

Using the data obtained in this way, the company plans to refine the marketability of mass-produced hydrogen mobility products and explore various ways to utilize the fuel cell powerpack. Starting next year, they will participate in the government's pilot project for reliability verification technology development and operate a large-scale hydrogen forklift fleet.

Officials attending the kickoff event for the Hydrogen Mobility Demonstration Project are taking a commemorative photo next to a hydrogen forklift. From the left in the photo: Kim Ki-cheol, Executive Director of Hyundai Glovis; Geum Young-beom, Executive Director of Hyundai Mobis; Woo Hang-soo, Director of Ulsan Technopark; Kim Mi-geum, Officer of the Ministry of SMEs and Startups; In Jeong-seok, Officer of Ulsan Metropolitan City; Lee Jae-hoon, Executive Director of Hyundai Genuine.
Photo by Hyundai Mobis

Earlier, Hyundai Mobis recently became the first in Korea to obtain integrated national certification in the mobile fuel cell sector. Acquiring KC certification in the fuel cell field is known to be challenging due to strict safety standards and testing evaluation processes. The company received certification from the Korea Gas Safety Corporation. According to the Hydrogen Act, hydrogen manufacturing facilities and hydrogen product businesses are required to obtain integrated national certification.

As the only domestic company to acquire certification in this field, Hyundai Mobis announced plans to actively participate in various government- or privately-led hydrogen mobility pilot projects. They anticipate that once product verification through demonstration projects is completed, they will become a leading company in the fuel cell sector and achieve economies of scale.

Geum Young-beom, head of Hyundai Mobis Fuel Cell Business Division, said, "Fuel cells will grow as one of the company's sustainable growth engines," adding, "We will contribute to expanding and establishing the hydrogen new industry ecosystem."

The fuel cell powerpack is an ultra-compact generator that produces electricity using hydrogen. It is an integrated system combining a fuel cell stack, cooling device, high-voltage battery, and hydrogen tank. The powerpack for forklifts to be deployed this time has a maximum output of 50 kW and can produce electricity equivalent to five days' worth (based on a family of four) on a single charge.

Compared to diesel or lead-acid battery forklifts mainly used in industrial sites, it produces less noise and significantly fewer harmful emissions. The company emphasized that its applications can be expanded across various fields, including drones, small industrial machines, excavators, large construction machinery, auxiliary generators, railroads, trucks, ships, and aircraft.