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| Hyundai Motor Group Chairman Chung Euisun, second from left, poses with POSCO Chairman Choi Jeong-woo, third from left, after signing an agreement cooperating on their hydrogen businesses at the latter's headquarters in Pohang, North Gyeongsang Province, Tuesday. Courtesy of Hyundai Motor Group |
By Baek Byung-yeul
Hyundai Motor Group and POSCO have signed an agreement to propel their lucrative hydrogen businesses, they said Tuesday.
Hyundai Motor Group, the country's largest automotive group, said it has formed business ties with steel giant POSCO, under which the two companies plan to create an ecosystem for the hydrogen-related sector and seek possible business opportunities together.
They expect the partnership to widen further as the companies have the common goal of achieving carbon neutrality by making the transition to a hydrogen economy. Under the agreement, they will jointly develop technologies to utilize hydrogen energy, use Hyundai's hydrogen fuel-cell electric vehicles (FCEVs) at POSCO's workplaces and seek business opportunities both here and abroad.
"To achieve carbon neutrality and build a sustainable future society, the paradigm shift to a hydrogen economy has become essential to every company," the Hyundai Motor Group chairman said. "In cooperation with POSCO, we will try to achieve meaningful results so that we can contribute to the creation of a robust ecosystem for the hydrogen industry."
Hyundai will gradually provide 1,500 hydrogen vehicles to POSCO's steel mills in Gwangyang and Pohang, two of the country's major southern industrial cities. They will also seek opportunities for their participation in overseas hydrogen production projects.
Hyundai Motor Group has been at the forefront of boosting the hydrogen economy. It has rolled out its Nexo FCEV and has exported the heavy-duty FCEV truck XCIENT to European countries. To further lead the market, the company also added a bus FCEV.
POSCO is also moving toward the hydrogen-oriented business, as the steel giant announced in December that it will establish a 5 million-ton hydrogen production system by 2050. POSCO produces 7,000 tons of hydrogen annually.
