China’s father of electric cars says hydrogen is the future

His vision to make China an electric vehicle (EV) powerhouse revolutionised the global auto industry, cementing a move away from the combustion engine. Now, Wan Gang says, get ready for the next game-changing moment.

The world’s biggest car market is set to embrace hydrogen fuel-cell vehicles the way it did EVs, Wan, who’s been called the father of

China’s electric-car movement, said in an interview in Beijing last month.

A former Audi executive who went on to become China’s science and technology minister, Wan convinced leaders two decades ago to bet on the then-untested technology of vehicle electrification. Now it’s hydrogen’s turn, Wan said.

“We should look into establishing a hydrogen society,” said Wan, 66, now a vice-chairperson of

China’s national advisory body for policymaking, a role that ranks higher than a minister and gives him a voice in the nation’s future planning. “We need to move further toward fuel cells.”

Despite the backing of industry giants such as Toyota Motor Corp and the benefits of fuel-cell vehicles, they refuel faster and are more suitable for driving long distances than all-electric vehicles, the technology hasn’t caught on amid expensive prices.

But China has the muscle to change all that should it make hydrogen-powered vehicles a national priority.

For Wan, a mechanical engineer trained in Germany, the shift toward hydrogen is a natural step in realising a vision of having electric cars dominate inner-city traffic, while buses and trucks filled with hydrogen tanks roam the nation’s highways for long-distance travel.

The adoption of fuel-cell vehicles has been slow in spite of China having an abundant supply of hydrogen, Wan said. There are only about 1 500 such vehicles today, compared with more than 2 million electric vehicles, he said.

It’s not just China. Hydrogen fuel cells have struggled to gain traction worldwide not just because of high costs but also because of the lack of infrastructure and the complexity of storing hydrogen.

Then there’s the matter of hydrogen’s flammability, as evidenced by the recent fire at a refuelling station in Norway.

“We will sort out the factors that have been hindering the development of fuel-cell vehicles,” Wan said.

In China, buses appear to be particularly ripe for fuel cells, which use a chemical process to convert hydrogen into electricity, emitting only water vapour. Hydrogen buses are capable of driving beyond 500km on a full tank, versus about 200km for electric ones.

China is promoting the adoption of hydrogen vehicles in selected trial regions as it sets up an ecosystem that includes hydrogen production, storage, transportation and refuelling, Wan added.

He doesn’t envision China issuing a national ban on petrol-driven cars as provincial authorities will be left to make their own decisions, but he said: “We have a responsibility to reduce emissions.” |