Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy

The Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy (MOTIE) announced on November 14 that the proposal for an amendment to the Hydrogen Economy Promotion and Hydrogen Safety Management Act (“Hydrogen Act”) has passed the 47^th Cabinet meeting’s deliberation and resolution process.

The Korean government has thus far been making efforts to establish a clean hydrogen certification system in view of relevant trends in other major countries and domestic conditions. The Cabinet approval of the Hydrogen Act amendment proposal comes on the heels of the pre-announcement of the Hydrogen Act legislation (May 2-June 12), regulation review (May 2-August 25) and a review by the Ministry of Government Legislation (June 22-November 7).

The Hydrogen Act amendment proposal contains applicable provisions for enforcement, including those regarding the clean hydrogen certification standards and procedures, post-management, and the designation of certifying institutions. The technical specifications of certification are to be publicly announced to promote a flexible response and system management in accordance with technology maturity.

MOTIE’s Hydrogen Economy Policy Director General Park Chan-ki stated that “we are anticipating that this amendment will trigger large-scale corporate investments by establishing a foundation for the certification of clean hydrogen, a core means in achieving carbon neutrality, and we intend to launch related systems like the Clean Hydrogen Energy Portfolio Standards (CHPS), which is to be opened next year, without a hitch.”

MOTIE plans to swiftly push the follow-up measures to complete all preparations necessary for enforcing the clean hydrogen certification system so as to spur the process of nurturing Korea’s clean hydrogen ecosystem.