ULSAN, South Korea – South Korea’s hub of heavy industry is betting big on hydrogen as a future fuel source, with corporate heavyweights including Hyundai Motor wading deep into the space.
The industrial city of Ulsan, two hours from Seoul by bullet train on the country’s southeast coast, is emerging as a national locus for hydrogen power. Sometimes known as “Hyundai City,” it is home to major firms including global top 10 automaker Hyundai Motor and the world’s leading shipbuilder, Hyundai Heavy Industries.
Beyond autos and ships, it also hosts thriving petrochemical and battery sectors and foreign firms including BASF, S-Oil and Dupont.
As hydrogen take-up takes off, Korean corporate officials hope for a so-called “Golden Cross:” A combination of economies of scale, related efficiencies and improved technologies. That would bring costs down to realistic levels.
No question, Korea needs a clean, green solution.