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On August 27, China’s first Hydrogen Energy Demonstration Project launched by United Nations Development Program (UNDP) officially kicked off in Rugao, Jiangsu Province. As an expanded part based on the commercialization project of fuel cell vehicles for public transportation in China, the Hydrogen Energy Demonstration Project aims to further push the all-around application of fuel cell vehicles. On the same day, Youngman Group signed an agreement with Lianyungang Haitong Public Transport for 1,500 units hydrogen fuel cell buses. Hualing Capital stroke a deal with Rugao Economic & Technological Development Zone.
“The project marks a new milestone in China’s hydrogen energy economy, showing Chinese cities are putting new energy economy high on the urban development agenda”, says Xiao Fenghuai, Deputy Director of International Economic & Technological Exchange Center attached to China’s Ministry of Commerce. Since 2009, Rugao government has been making great efforts to attract investments from a number of new energy enterprises. For years’ hard work, the city has now built a sound infrastructure for new energy development. Now, Rugao is New Energy Vehicle (NEV) Production Base in Jiangsu province. Bing Energy, which is located in the city, has made impressive achievements in the hydrogen fuel sector after years’ of cooperation with Tongji University and research institutions in the U.S. So far, its hydrogen fuel cell system has been successfully applied to a logistic vehicle rolled out by Youngman Group. In addition, its new production base with an annual production volume of 18,000 sets of 10-15 Kw hydrogen fuel cell system has already been put into operation in Rugao. Zehe, another company involved in the research and development of hydrogen fuel cell power systems, also boasts competitive strengths in the field.
Hydrogen fuel is a zero-emission fuel when burned with oxygen (if one considers water not as an emission) or used in a contained cell also capable of "reversing" the reaction if needed. It often uses electrochemical cells, or combustion in internal engines, to power vehicles and electric devices. The increasing demand on clean energy and wide application of hydrogen makes the realization of a hydrogen economy increasingly prominent and the prospect of a zero-carbon economy a real possibility.
UNDP has been pursuing the development of new energy vehicles (NEV) that can be recharged from non-fossil fuels such as electricity and hydrogen. These include electric vehicles, hybrid powered alongside fuel cell. With the financial support of the Global Environment Facility (GEF), UNDP China has been working since 2003 to catalyze the cost-reduction of fuel-cell buses for public transport through a GEF project, Demonstration for Fuel-cell Buses Commercialization in China.