In June 2025, China's National Energy Administration (NEA) unveiled the country's first central-level policy dedicated to hydrogen pilot programs. The first batch will roll out within this year. Unlike earlier blueprints, this marks a shift toward system-wide implementation of hydrogen development.
The original text of the policy can be accessed via this link:
https://www.nea.gov.cn/20250610/472b12c43f534aab9a95de81034dcd92/c.html
From Demonstration to Chain-Wide Integration
This policy marks a turning point - shifting focus from isolated pilots to scalable, replicable solutions:
- Project pilots target specific technologies or stages (e.g., low-cost hydrogen production, efficient storage and transport) to validate viable business models.
- Regional pilots aim to build integrated ecosystems across the full value chain, from production to end use, enabling commercial and industrial-scale deployment.
For energy companies and investors, these pilots provide a roadmap toward market maturity. Players able to address cost and coordination challenges are well positioned for leadership in the next wave of industry consolidation.
Momentum Builds in Policy and Investment
- Policy Elevation: Hydrogen was listed as a strategic emerging industry in China's 2024 Government Work Report, up from a focus on refueling infrastructure in 2019. National hydrogen policies rose 5.8% YoY in 2024. Policy rollouts in H1 2025 have already exceeded half of the full-year 2024 total.
- Surge in Projects: In 2024, 145 new hydrogen projects were proposed or under construction (+39% YoY). H1 2025 has already surpassed half that volume - signaling rapid project deployment.
Bottlenecks Remain
Despite growing policy and market support, real-world progress faces headwinds:
- Delayed execution: As of June 2025, only 10.8% of announced green hydrogen projects were operational.
- Project suspensions: Nearly 20 green hydrogen and green ammonia/methanol projects were suspended in Inner Mongolia, Jilin, and other provinces - mostly due to lack of tangible progress within a year. One notable case: the halt of the world's first 100 Mtpa liquid sunshine green methanol project.
Key barriers: poor project economics, value chain imbalance (upstream oversupply vs. downstream demand uncertainty), and gaps in storage and transport technology.
The full report offers in-depth analysis of China's new hydrogen pilot policy, including:
- National policy landscape
- Hydrogen project development status
- Key barriers to scale-up
- Policy-backed pilot directions
The above content is the major conclusions and highlights extracted from China (Energy Transition) Policy Perspective. To get detailed full text, send an email to glconsulting@mysteel.com.
