China announced on Monday the launch of a pilot program of the comprehensive application of hydrogen energy, aiming to boost the high-quality development of hydrogen sector and advance the country's green transition.
According to a circular jointly issued by three departments, including the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, pilots should be applied by city clusters as the main participants. The central government will provide reward funds to these city clusters, with each pilot period lasting four years. The maximum reward for a single city cluster during the pilot period will not exceed 1.6 billion yuan (about 232 million U.S. dollars), according to the document.
The circular sets a goal of cutting end-user hydrogen prices to below 25 yuan per kg by 2030 -- and around 15 yuan in advantageous regions -- while fostering hydrogen power as a new driver of economic growth.
It also aims to have 100,000 fuel cell vehicles nationwide by 2030, double the 2025 level, according to the document.
China's hydrogen industry has progressed from "zero to one" but still faces challenges such as limited application scenarios, high costs, and difficulties in storage and transportation, the ministry noted. The pilot program will prioritize fuel cell vehicles, hydrogen-powered industrial applications, and innovative uses of hydrogen.
By the end of 2025, nearly 40,000 hydrogen fuel cell vehicles had been sold nationwide, placing China among the world's leading countries in the sector, the ministry said.
China launches application pilot program to boost hydrogen energy development
Mounting global conflicts, from the devastating human suffering in war zones to trade disruptions that threaten basic survival, create challenges no single nation can solve alone, United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) Administrator Alexander De Croo said Thursday.
Speaking to China Media Group in Beijing, De Croo called for a collective international response and a decisive "multilateral turning point" to restore functional diplomacy in an increasingly fractured world.
He stressed that while international bodies face constant scrutiny, an effective United Nations remains essential to enforce ceasefires, protect vulnerable populations, and halt the cycle of "development in reverse".
"I think first of all it's quite clear if you look at the big endeavors that we have in the world, no one can solve it on their own, being it climate change, being it eradicating poverty, fighting extremist violence. There is no country, even the most prosperous one, even the most powerful one, even the largest one, no one can say I'm going to do this on my own. And so for those big, what you would call worldwide global goods, I mean, these are things that you can only solve together. But I think we need to be challenged every day and I have no problem whatsoever that we are being challenged. I believe that in many conflicts, you need a performing United Nations that has that basic mission to reduce conflicts, to stop conflicts," said De Croo.
Highlighting the mounting economic toll on vulnerable families, De Croo criticized international failure to prioritize ceasefires, warning that ongoing warfare is actively reversing global development progress.
"We have so many conflicts in the world. And I find it worrying that in many of those conflicts, we almost don't talk about peace anymore. It is almost that trying to find a ceasefire or trying to maintain a ceasefire is being seen as less important, as being seen as not a priority. Conflict is development in reverse. Unfortunately, many places of the world, people are feeling what development in reverse is, if you have a conflict such as now in the Strait of Hormuz. This is increasing the cost of living for many people, and it's increasing the cost of living for people who are the most vulnerable ones who at some point have to make choices, and have to use money that maybe was being used to send children to school to just get access to basic food. And so anyone who does an honest effort in trying to stop a conflict and trying to maintain a ceasefire will get our support," he said.
No country can solve global issues alone amid escalating conflicts: UNDP chief
