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Hyundai Motor Group and Air Liquide Forge Global Hydrogen Partnership

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  Published in Automotive and Transportation on Thursday, December 4th 2025 at 5:50 GMT by ThePrint

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Hyundai Motor Group and Air Liquide Take a Giant Leap Forward in the Global Hydrogen Ecosystem

The world’s push toward cleaner, more sustainable mobility has just received a powerful boost. In a recently unveiled press release, South Korean automaker Hyundai Motor Group and French industrial gas giant Air Liquide announced a deepened global partnership aimed at accelerating the development of a robust hydrogen ecosystem. The collaboration, which builds upon years of joint research, pilot projects, and commercial agreements, is set to deliver a wide array of technology, infrastructure, and market‑creation solutions that will help bring hydrogen to the mainstream by the mid‑2030s.

Why Hydrogen Matters – The Context of the Partnership

Hydrogen has long been hailed as a key component of the low‑carbon future, especially for sectors that are difficult to decarbonise with battery electric technologies alone, such as heavy‑duty trucks, buses, shipping, and even some industrial processes. While the science behind hydrogen is straightforward—burn it to release energy and only water vapour—building a practical, affordable, and globally integrated supply chain has proven far more complex.

South Korea, Japan and China have traditionally been leaders in hydrogen research, yet the industry still faces three major challenges:

1. Production – Most hydrogen today is produced via steam‑methane reforming, which emits CO₂ unless paired with carbon capture. Electrolyzers powered by renewables are a cleaner alternative, but their capital cost is still high.
2. Storage & Transport – Hydrogen has a very low volumetric energy density, making it costly and technically challenging to store, compress, and transport over long distances.
3. Infrastructure – Hydrogen fueling stations remain scarce, especially outside the few “pilot” projects in Japan and the United States.

Hyundai Motor Group, with its pioneering fuel‑cell vehicles such as the NEXO and upcoming commercial models, and Air Liquide, which operates the world’s largest hydrogen supply network, are uniquely positioned to tackle all three of these pillars simultaneously. The partnership therefore represents a “one‑stop shop” for the entire hydrogen value chain—from clean production to final delivery at the pump.

Key Elements of the New Collaboration

1. Joint Hydrogen Production Ventures

Hyundai and Air Liquide are set to co‑invest in several state‑of‑the‑art electrolyzer plants across the globe. One of the flagship projects will be a 10 MW electrolyzer in South Korea, which will generate enough hydrogen to power a pilot fleet of 500 Hyundai fuel‑cell buses over a 5‑year period. In Europe, a 5 MW plant will serve the Norsk Hydro and Shell gas hubs, illustrating the partnership’s reach beyond the automotive sector.

“The scale of the production facilities we are targeting is a clear signal that we are no longer talking about niche pilots,” said a Hyundai executive. “By creating economies of scale we can bring the cost of green hydrogen down to a level that will be competitive with fossil‑based fuels.”

2. Global Network of Hydrogen Refueling Stations

Air Liquide already runs a network of over 200 hydrogen refueling stations in Japan and the United States. Under the new partnership, both companies will collaborate on a global roadmap for 1,000 stations by 2035, focusing initially on high‑traffic corridors in the U.S. (e.g., the California‑Nevada corridor), Europe (e.g., the French‑German border), and Asia (e.g., Tokyo–Osaka corridor).

The stations will integrate hybrid fueling technologies – combining hydrogen with compressed natural gas (CNG) to provide a “dual‑fuel” solution that is easier to store and transport.

3. Advanced Storage & Distribution Technologies

Air Liquide’s expertise in cryogenic gases will be combined with Hyundai’s research in advanced fuel‑cell stacks to develop high‑pressure, lightweight storage solutions that can be integrated into both commercial trucks and passenger vehicles. Prototypes are already being tested in the Hyundai Heavy Industries’ research labs.

A significant breakthrough announced in the press release is the “Hydrogen‑Integrated Vehicle‑To‑Grid” (H‑VTG) system, which allows hydrogen‑powered buses to act as mobile energy storage, feeding excess electricity back into the grid during peak demand.

4. Market Creation & Policy Advocacy

Recognizing that technology alone will not win the market, the partnership will jointly lobby for government incentives and public‑private partnerships. In South Korea, a proposal is already under discussion to establish a “Hydrogen Highway” tax incentive that covers the full life cycle of hydrogen vehicles and fueling infrastructure.

On the European side, the partnership is working with the European Union’s Hydrogen Strategy to ensure that the infrastructure developments align with the EU’s 2030 climate targets.

Highlights of the Press Release

1. Co‑investment Strategy – Hyundai Motor Group will contribute up to US$250 million over five years, while Air Liquide will match or exceed this amount, focusing on plant construction, station deployment, and R&D.
2. Technology Roadmap – The partnership’s roadmap outlines three phases: (i) pilot production and station trials in 2025–2026; (ii) scale‑up to commercial plants by 2028; (iii) full‑scale deployment by 2035.
3. Synergy with Hyundai’s Vehicle Portfolio – The collaboration will feed the hydrogen needed for all upcoming Hyundai fuel‑cell vehicles, including a next‑generation NEXO EV hybrid that will combine battery and fuel‑cell power.
4. Environmental Impact – By reducing hydrogen’s cost to below $1/kg in the mid‑2030s, the partnership could lower the overall CO₂ emissions of the automotive sector by 2–3 million tons per year in the first decade.

What This Means for the Future

The partnership between Hyundai Motor Group and Air Liquide is more than a commercial alliance; it’s a blueprint for how industry players can combine expertise to overcome the systemic barriers that have slowed hydrogen’s adoption. By aligning production, storage, infrastructure, and policy, the collaboration positions hydrogen not as a niche technology but as a mainstream energy carrier.

Key takeaways:

• Mass Production – The move to multi‑MW electrolyzers signals the transition from “proof‑of‑concept” to “commercial viability.”
• Infrastructure Scale‑Up – The ambitious station deployment plan addresses one of the biggest bottlenecks: accessibility for consumers and fleet operators.
• Technology Innovation – New storage solutions and vehicle‑grid integration will increase the overall energy efficiency of the system.
• Policy Synergy – Joint lobbying can accelerate supportive regulatory frameworks, critical for rapid market penetration.

Final Thought

As governments worldwide tighten emissions targets and companies pledge net‑zero pathways, hydrogen is becoming an indispensable pillar of the transition. The Hyundai–Air Liquide partnership exemplifies the strategic, cross‑sector collaboration needed to make hydrogen a viable, everyday fuel. By 2035, if the roadmap stays on track, we may witness a fully functioning hydrogen ecosystem that rivals the ubiquity of gasoline and diesel, but with zero emissions. That vision is now a step closer to reality.