Sejong, November 14 - The Ministry of Environment (ME, Minister Han Wha-jin) announced the "Jeonju Pyeonghwa Hydrogen Fueling Station," the largest one in the country, was opened on November 7. The Jeonju Pyeonghwa Hydrogen Fueling Station is for commercial vehicles, with a charging capacity of 300kg per hour. The Ministry of Environment has supported to build of the hydrogen fueling station since 2021 as a part of subsidizing the private sector to build hydrogen fueling stations. The completion ceremony was attended by the CEO of Kohygen Lee Gyeong-sil, Vice Minister of Environment Yoo Je-chul, and Vice Governor of Jeollabuk-do Jo Bong-eop. Mayor of Jeonju Woo Beom-gi, Chairman of Jeonju City Council Lee Gi-dong, CEO of Korea Gas Safety Corporation Lim Hae-jong CEO of Korea Gas Technology Corporation Jo Yong-don, Chairman of Korea Automobile Environmental Association Jo Byeong-ok, and Chairman of Jeil-Seongjin Bus Kim Jin-tae also attended the ceremony.

After additional test operations, the Jeonju Pyeonghwa Hydrogen Fueling Station will begin operation early next month. The hydrogen fueling station will operate from 5 AM to 11 PM for eighteen hours, and three fuel cell buses can refuel simultaneously, making two hundred buses refuel a day. The hydrogen fueling station is located in the bus garage, housing more than 200 buses. It is expected to help the city of Jeonju switch its buses to hydrogen fuel cells.  

Kohygen, who managed the project, is a company specializing in building commercial-scale hydrogen fueling stations founded in March 2021 after signing a contract at the 2nd Meeting of the Hydrogen Economy Committee in October 2020. The Jeonju Pyeonghwa Hydrogen Fueling Station is Kohygen's first accomplishment since its founding. The company is engaged in eighteen projects for building hydrogen fueling stations in cooperation with local governments.

In 2019, the city of Jeonju was selected as one of the hydrogen pilot cities by the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, and Transport (MOLIT). The city has supplied 826 hydrogen passenger cars and 26 hydrogen buses as of October 2022. In particular, Jeonju is ranked in third place nationwide for the number of registered hydrogen buses (26 buses) out of 226 local governments, including si, gun, and gu levels. Furthermore, the city plans to bring in 24 more hydrogen buses, making 50 in total by the time the Jeonju Pyeonghwa Hydrogen Charging Station opens.

The Ministry of Environment plans to build more hydrogen fueling stations in cooperation with local governments to supply more hydrogen commercial vehicles, which are more effective in reducing fine particles and greenhouse gases than passenger vehicles. The government budget for 2023 includes the budget for building 32 hydrogen fueling stations for commercial vehicles and ten liquid hydrogen charging stations.

Yoo Je-chul, Vice Minister of Environment, said, "Opening of the largest charging station in the nation will usher in the new era of commercial hydrogen vehicles." He added, "The Ministry of Environment will work with local governments and contractors to increase the number of commercial hydrogen vehicles and build more hydrogen fueling stations."

Contact: Lee Se-ho, Deputy Director

Air Quality Future Strategy Division / +82-(0)44-201-6884

Foreign Media Contact: Chun Minjo(Rachel)

+82-(0)44-201-6055 / rachelmchun@korea.kr