Qingdao City Builds Hydrogen Energy Cluster Aiming to Become 'Oriental Hydrogen Energy Island'
Inspection of Qingdao Hydrogen Energy Cluster and Exploration of Korea-China Green Hydrogen Cooperation
Shandong Province Hydrogen Energy Industry Development Plan
Shandong Province has formulated the "2020-2030 Medium-Term Development Plan for the Hydrogen Energy Industry" with the goal of becoming "China's Hydrogen Valley" and "Oriental Hydrogen Energy Island", and is building the "Shandong Hydrogen Economy Belt" connecting Qingdao, Weifang, Zibo, Jinan, Liaocheng, and Jining in Shandong Province. It also plans to build a "National Hydrogen Energy and Fuel Cell Demonstration Zone" covering everything from research and development to equipment manufacturing and application.
Among them, Qingdao is the core area of Shandong Province's hydrogen energy industry and plans to complete an influential hydrogen energy cluster in China by 2030. It is promoting a development plan to foster more than 20 hydrogen-related companies by utilizing related infrastructure such as nearby industrial parks and ports, and aim to achieve a hydrogen industry production value of 500 billion yuan.
Qingdao Hydrogen Energy Cluster Overview
The 'Qingdao Hydrogen Energy Cluster', located in Poli Town, Xihai's West Coast New Area, the ninth national-level new area approved by the State Council of China, focuses on four areas: fuel cell systems, hydrogen production, hydrogen storage and charging equipment, and key hydrogen energy materials.
The Qingdao Hydrogen Energy Cluster is adjacent to the Qingdao Green Low-Carbon New Materials Industrial Park, where Haiwan Chemical and Jinneng Chemical, which have hydrogen energy production capabilities, are located, making it easy to procure hydrogen energy. When the cluster is fully operational, the annual hydrogen energy production is expected to reach 28 tons.
In addition, the hydrogen energy industrial complex established in 2019 by Meijin Energy Group, a hydrogen charging station specialist, is also located in Porijin. Meijin Energy Group produces hydrogen fuel cell vehicles and has plans to expand the scale of hydrogen fuel cell vehicle production and hydrogen charging stations, so it may seek opportunities for cooperation.
In addition, it is close to Dongjiakou Wharf of Shandong Port Group, which is a bulk cargo center and energy transportation and storage center, and has a convenient environment for foreign trade. In January 2025, the Shandong Provincial Government approved the expansion of the Dongjiakou Terminal to a 1-ton oil terminal and berth to strengthen its role as an energy transportation center.
With these geographical advantages, since the cluster was approved in August 2023, 8 hydrogen energy projects have been signed so far, with a total investment of 22 billion yuan. By 140, the plan is to achieve a production value of 2025 billion yuan, foster at least five special purpose enterprises (China's hidden champion enterprises), and at least five high-tech enterprises (state-supported high-tech enterprises).
<Summary of Qingdao Hydrogen Energy Cluster>
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구분 |
Contents |
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Floor |
Poli Town, Xihai'an New District, Qingdao City |
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area |
총 84만3864㎡(핵심구역 41만7942㎡, 확장구역 42만5922㎡) |
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planning period |
2024-2026 years |
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Core Areas |
Fuel cell systems, hydrogen production, hydrogen storage and charging equipment, hydrogen energy core materials |
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Key features |
– Easy procurement of hydrogen energy (Hywan Chemical, Jinneng Chemical, etc.) - Location of key hydrogen fuel cell vehicle companies (Meijin Energy Group, etc.) – Adjacent to Dongjiakou Port, an energy transportation and storage center |
[Data: KOTRA Qingdao Trade Center]
Visit to Qingdao Hydrogen Energy Cluster
On April 4, KOTRA Qingdao Trade Center visited the Qingdao Hydrogen Energy Cluster with the help of the Korea Carbon Neutrality and ESG Research Institute and the local government of Porijin to gain a detailed understanding of the current status of Qingdao's hydrogen energy industry.
The local government of Porijin held a meeting with the Qingdao Trade Office in the local government conference room to introduce the current status of the Qingdao hydrogen energy cluster, local government support policies, and the characteristics of cluster resident companies.
A local government official from Porijin pointed out that the differentiating advantages of the Qingdao hydrogen energy cluster include the fact that major chemical companies are located nearby, which allows for the production of “gray hydrogen,” and that it is adjacent to the sea, which allows for the simultaneous production of “green hydrogen” using offshore wind and offshore solar power. He also emphasized that Qingdao has a port, which is advantageous for hydrogen energy trade.
<Meeting with the local government of Porijin>
[Data: KOTRA Qingdao Trade Center’s own filming]
Following the meeting, we visited Dongjiakou Port for an on-site inspection. The person in charge of Dongjiakou Port said that Dongjiakou Port is a center for energy logistics such as petrochemical products, metal ores, coal, and LNG, and is a leader in the hydrogen port field, including the construction of the first hydrogen charging station in a Chinese port and the world’s first hydrogen energy rail crane and AGV (Automated Guided Vehicle, unmanned transport vehicle).
<Dongjiakou Port On-Site Inspection>
[Data: KOTRA Qingdao Trade Center’s own filming]
Lastly, we visited the hydrogen energy cluster and heard about the current status of development in the field of hydrogen energy applications.
<Visit to Hydrogen Energy Cluster>
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Hydrogen fuel cell motorcycle |
Hydrogen fuel cell drone |
[Data: KOTRA Qingdao Trade Center’s own filming]
on-site interview
The following is the interview conducted by the Qingdao Trade Office with local government officials in Porijin.
Q1. Please introduce the current status of applications in the Qingdao Hydrogen Energy Industrial Park.
A1. Hydrogen energy applications such as shared bicycles, hydrogen fuel cell drones, unmanned ships, buses, cold chain logistics and transportation vehicles are developing rapidly. Currently, we are promoting comprehensive applications in transportation, energy storage, power plants, ports, etc., and focusing on building infrastructure to support the construction of hydrogen charging stations.
Q2. What efforts are being made to develop the Qingdao Hydrogen Energy Industrial Park?
A2. Starting with the signing of the second phase of the Qingdao Hydrogen Energy Industrial Park project on March 2025, 3, a total of more than 14 billion yuan has been invested, 2 key projects have been signed and are expected to start construction, and the hydrogen fuel cell vehicle demonstration line, 40 commercial vehicle hydrogen charging stations, and 14 hydrogen energy sharing bicycles are being prepared. In addition, the plan is to create China's best hydrogen energy ecosystem by targeting an industrial scale of 100 billion yuan by 1000.
implication
China's hydrogen energy industry is still in the development stage, but it is growing rapidly as a new strategic industry of the Chinese government, and the industry scale is expected to continue to expand. In particular, Qingdao, Shandong Province, has hydrogen energy development infrastructure such as nearby industrial complexes and ports, and is geographically close to Korea, so it is expected that there will be many opportunities for cooperation between Korean and Chinese companies.
Accordingly, the Qingdao Trade Office suggested, through this on-site visit, to investigate the needs of cluster companies for cooperation with Korean companies, and proposed building a business model that connects networking → trade → technology and investment cooperation between Korean and Chinese companies based on the actual needs for cooperation.
As the first step in Korea-Shandong Province hydrogen energy cooperation, a hydrogen energy session will be held at the 'Korea-Shandong Province Future Industry Cooperation Plaza' forum scheduled to be held in June of this year, and networking between Korean and Chinese companies will be supported. Afterwards, a business partnering consultation meeting will be held to discover practical cooperation needs.