Sinopec has opened China’s first methanol-to-hydrogen and hydrogen refueling service station, located in Dalian, China.
Sinopec’s hydrogen production plant – which produces 1,000 kg of hydrogen a day, with a purity of 99.999% – covers a small area and has a short construction time. The new service station can save costs on hydrogen production, storage and transportation by more than 20% compared to traditional hydrogen refueling stations, and it will become a pilot model to lead the development of China’s hydrogen energy industry according to Sinopec
China produces the most methanol in the world, accounting for 60% of the global total. The storage and transportation cost of methanol is also much lower than hydrogen, making methanol-to-hydrogen an ideal hydrogen production technology.
“The launch of the service station has shown that distributed methanol-to-hydrogen is the right roadmap for the sustainable development of China’s hydrogen fueling stations,” says Yang Junze, executive director of Sinopec Fuel Oil Sales. “It is a leapfrog development that offers a safe, reliable, green, intelligent, integrated and efficient solution that will contribute to the scaled application of hydrogen energy at lower cost.”
Sinopec has built two integrated fueling stations in Dalian’s free trade area, with six more now under construction.
