South Korea to import hydrogen

The South Korean government announced that hydrogen produced in Malaysia and the UAE would be imported in 2027 and later for the purpose of power generation and export after conversion into ammonia.

The hydroelectric power generation-based hydrogen in Malaysia is scheduled to be supplied by Samsung Engineering and Lotte Chemical. In the UAE, Korea Electric Power Corporation and Samsung C&T will produce hydrogen using solar power. The amounts from the two countries are estimated at 600,000 and 200,000 tons a year, respectively.

The government is planning to increase the domestic hydrogen demand until the import. Hydrogen-LNG fuel mixed combustion is being tested in this regard. According to the government, a carbon reduction of 10 percent can be reached when the content of hydrogen in LNG fuel combustion is 30 percent and the figure rises to 21 percent at 50 percent and 52 percent at 80 percent. In addition, it is planning to use ammonia to reduce carbon emissions from coal-based power generation.

According to industry sources, hydrogen as well as nuclear power needs to be better utilized for South Korea to attain its carbon reduction goal. In this context, the government’s plans include ammonia-fueled ship development by 2026 and liquid hydrogen carrier building by 2029.