A view of a hydrogen charging station dedicated at Sejong Government Complex.

Companies in several countries around the world are scrambling to pry open the global hydrogen economy market.

The market is gearing up to be a competitive one, as the size of the global economy market is predicted to stand at $2.5 trillion (3,000 trillion won) by 2050, and more than 30 million jobs are forecast to be created.

Korean companies are in the thick of it, as Hyundai Motor Group, Hanwha, Hyosung, Doosan business groups have come up with massive investment plans.

Figures released by the global management consulting company McKinsey & Company showed that hydrogen is forecast to take up an 18 percent share in global energy demand by 2050.

Global companies have joined in a race to explore the global hydrogen economy market. Korean companies are front-runners, as Korea ranks first in terms of supplying hydrogen fuel cell electric vehicles and installation of hydrogen charging stations.

In the latest development, officials from the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy and the Environment Ministry, including Deputy Minister Joo Young-joon, in charge of energy resources, attended a ceremony to dedicate a hydrogen charging station in Sejong Government Complex on Aug. 31.

Currently, 45 gas charging stations are in operation across the nation, including eight ones for research. According to the MOTIE, the number of hydrogen charging stations will rise to 310 by 2022.

The nation is seeking to build a society that harnesses hydrogen as the main source of energy for vehicles and other daily uses. The policy is one of national agendas of the Moon Jae-in administration.

Korea’s representative company in tapping the hydrogen economy market is Hyundai Motor Group, a “virtual first mover.” Hyundai Motor Group Executive Vice Chairman Chung Eui-sun once said his group is making strenuous efforts to develop and supply hydrogen fuel cell electric vehicles to the general public at reasonable prices, taking responsibility as a leading hydrogen mobility company.

Dignitaries, including Vice Minister Hong Jeong-kee of the Ministry of Environment and Deputy Minister Joo Young-joon of the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy, President Chae Hee-bong of Korea Gas Coprp., and President Kim Jong-beom of Korea Gas Safety Corp. attend a ceremony to dedicate a hydrogen charging station in Sejong Government Complex on Aug. 31. (Photos: MOTIE)

Hyundai Motor Group will lower barriers related to the supply of FECVs by continuously ramping up technology leadership rather than a focus on short-term sales goals, he added.

Hyundai Motor Group unveiled a plan to lead the hydrogen fuel cell vehicle market by building a mass production system capable of 500,000 FECVs annually by 2030.

The group plans to invest a combined 7.6 trillion won in the hydrogen economy field and create 51,000 new jobs.

The group has built a hydrogen fuel cell electric bus refueling station in Incheon International Airport and opened the nation’s first hydrogen refueling station for commercial vehicles in Jeonju so far this year.

In particular, Hyundai Motor has built the world’s first large-sized hydrogen fuel cell electric truck mass production system and it has begun to export it XCIENT Fuel Cell trucks to Switzerland.

Hanwha Group, designating hydrogen as one of its future growth engines, plans to let subsidiaries tap the value chain of the hydrogen industry, ranging from hydrogen production to storage, transportation, and utilization.

Hyosung Group will invest a combined 300 billion to build the world’s largest liquid hydrogen plant in Ulsan in cooperation with Linde, a global chemical company.

Doosan Group is an active player in the upcoming hydrogen economy market.

The company leverages highly reliable decade-long CEP technology and the company has been a stationary fuel cell market leader.

Doosan Mobility Innovation offers drone solutions based on Fuel Cell powerpacks.

Kolon Industries specializes in components of hydrogen fuel cars, including a humidity control device that helps improve the efficiency of the fuel cells.

The company succeeded in commercializing the humidity control device for the first time in the world in cooperation with Hyundai Motor in 2013.

Kolon Industries aims to collaborate in technology development with global players with the goal of taking an over 50 percent share in the global market.