Hyundai Motor Group announced on the 8th that it participated in the 'World Hydrogen Expo 2026' (hereinafter referred to as WHE 2026) held at KINTEX in Goyang-si, Gyeonggi-do from the 4th to 6th and successfully completed the exhibition.
'WHE 2026', now in its 7th year, is the largest hydrogen industry business event in the Asia-Pacific region, held by integrating a hydrogen industry exhibition and international conference.
This year, 197 companies and institutions from 12 countries participated, and about 18,600 visitors, including Vice Minister of Climate, Energy and Environment Lee Ho-hyun and National Assembly members Lee Jong-bae and Ahn Ho-young, visited to understand the latest technology trends related to hydrogen and participate in various experience programs.
At this event, Hyundai Motor Group set up a 720m² exhibition hall and unveiled for the first time the 5MW (megawatt) electrolyser stack module (ESM) configuration method, a commercial fuel cell system with improved durability, 'Blue Link Uptime Care', an integrated control system for hydrogen commercial vehicles, the hydrogen electric vehicle automatic charging robot (ACR-H), and the Saemangeum artificial intelligence (AI) valley diorama.
In particular, the hydrogen electric vehicle automatic charging robot was recognized for its technology by receiving an excellence award at the 'H2 Innovation Award' co-hosted by the WHE Organizing Committee and the Korea Institute of Industrial Technology Planning and Evaluation.
The Elec City hydrogen electric low-floor metropolitan bus, which is being developed in response to the low-floor metropolitan bus scheduled to be introduced compulsorily in 2027, was also introduced. Visitors boarded the vehicle directly and experienced the low-floor structure that took into consideration the convenience of transportation for the transportation vulnerable.
The Universe hydrogen electric bus marketability improvement model and The New Xcient hydrogen electric truck test drive program also gained popularity.
During the event, Sunjin Networks, K-1 Mobility, Zero Cool Tour, Shin Baekseung Travel Agency, as well as domestic and foreign transportation industry officials from Japan and Taiwan visited the exhibition hall, and Hyundai Motor Group took this as an opportunity to specify application plans for each field, such as introducing and operating hydrogen mobility, expanding charging infrastructure, and producing clean hydrogen, and sought practical opportunities for cooperation.
At the global conference 'Leadership Insight', ways to revitalize hydrogen project investment and international cooperation were discussed with major domestic hydrogen companies.
Ivana Zemelkova, CEO of the Hydrogen Council, emphasized at the conference that the focus of the hydrogen industry is shifting from technical feasibility to building viable business models. He then evaluated that Korea has great potential to expand its scope into water electrolysis and industrial use based on its experience in building a hydrogen mobility ecosystem, and explained that consistent policy implementation, predictable demand creation, and stable market environment are necessary.
Hyundai Motor Group participated in the panel discussion and said, “Hydrogen mobility is an important foundation for expanding the scale of the hydrogen industry by creating substantial demand for hydrogen and leading the growth of the charging infrastructure, supply chain, and small and medium-sized industries,” and added, “The government, industry, and academia must work together to create a virtuous cycle in which demand expansion, investment, and infrastructure construction organically lead.”
