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The International Hydrogen Committee recently released the \"Global Hydrogen Guide 2025,\" which states that the global hydrogen industry has now reached an important milestone: there are over 500 clean hydrogen projects in various stages of development or already in operation, including those producing green and blue hydrogen. The total amount of investment pledged for these projects has increased by 24.1% on a year-on-year basis, reaching over 110 billion dollars. Among them, China leads the world, with commitments to invest around $33 billion in clean hydrogen projects, making it a leader in the capacity for producing green hydrogen through electrolysis of renewable energy ； North America follows closely behind, with committed investments of around $23 billion, and possesses the majority of the capacity planned to produce blue hydrogen using carbon capture and storage (CCS) technology ； Europe ranks third, with a total investment commitment of around $19 billion. ■■Investments in clean hydrogen are set to grow at an average annual rate of 50%. The Global Hydrogen Report 2025 indicates that since the beginning of this year, 1 million tons of clean hydrogen production capacity has come online worldwide, of which 30% is green hydrogen and 70% is blue hydrogen. Since 2020, the global clean hydrogen industry has seen an average annual growth rate of 50% in committed investments, with over 1,700 projects announced. Jang Jae-hoon, vice chairman of the Hyundai Motor Group and a member of the International Hydrogen Committee, said that the scale of investment and the number of projects announced indicate that the clean hydrogen industry is continuing to mature. On the supply side, a total capacity of over 6 million tons per year for clean hydrogen has been committed, of which 1 million tons per year is already in operation. Taking into account project delays and expected capacity losses, the annual production capacity of clean hydrogen is projected to reach 9 million to 14 million tons by 2030. On the demand side, there is currently a binding purchase volume of around 3.6 million tons per year, accounting for approximately 60% of the capacity of the projects that have been committed to. As policies in various countries become clearer, demand is expected to reach 8 million tons per year by 2030. A survey by the International Hydrogen Committee shows that 83% of corporate executives surveyed stated that over the past two years they have seen mature clean hydrogen projects moving forward, and believe the industry will continue to grow. 74% of the corporate executives surveyed said their willingness to invest in clean hydrogen remained stable or increased. 97% of the corporate executives surveyed believe that hydrogen energy will become a decarbonization solution for industries facing difficulties in reducing emissions. It should be noted that finding a purchaser remains the key to the successful progress of most hydrogen projects. According to the Global Hydrogen Guide 2025, approximately 70% of current commitments are focused on end uses such as refining and ammonia. Ammonia accounts for about 43% of all binding capacity commitments, making it the largest sector in terms of such commitments, and this trend is expected to continue. In addition, steel, road transportation, maritime shipping, and aviation are emerging sectors that deserve attention in the future. In the shipping industry, initial momentum is emerging regarding ships suitable for clean fuels and their refueling; ports and fleet operators are already beginning to prepare for the use of alternative fuels, with methanol, ammonia, and liquid hydrogen being the three most prominent alternatives. Currently, over 400 ships designed to use hydrogen or derived fuels are in order around the world, a figure that has increased 14 times in 3 years; ships using hydrogen or derived fuels account for 6% of all ship orders. ■■China accounts for half of the world’s committed green hydrogen production capacity. The International Hydrogen Committee states that China has become a leader in the deployment of electrolyzers worldwide, possessing more than half of the world’s committed green hydrogen production capacity. S&P predicts that by 2050, China’s annual production of green hydrogen will reach 33.4 million tons, far exceeding the 4.7 million tons produced in the United States and the 20 million tons produced in the European Union. By then, the cost of producing green hydrogen using electrolyzers in China could be on par with the cost of producing blue hydrogen from natural gas using CCS. Currently, most domestic clean hydrogen projects in the United States are facing obstacles. In October, the U.S. Department of Energy revoked its funding of $1.2 billion for the ARCHES hydrogen hub in California and $1 billion for the PNWH2 hydrogen hub in the Northwest Pacific. S&P noted that the Inflation Reduction Act would cause U.S. electrolyzer capacity to drop by over 60%, leaving only about 2.5 gigawatts by the end of 2030. Meanwhile, regulatory gridlock in Europe and weak demand have also become major obstacles to the development of hydrogen energy in the region. Although Europe has a considerable number of clean hydrogen projects that have reached final investment decisions, according to S&P data, it will have the highest number of cancellations in clean hydrogen capacity globally between 2024 and 2025. The Middle East is accelerating its efforts to catch up. According to the Global Hydrogen Outlook 2025, the Middle East has a total capacity of around 500,000 tons for producing clean hydrogen, of which 55% is green hydrogen and 45% is blue hydrogen. Factors such as abundant sunlight, high oil and gas production, and favorable financing options are driving an accelerated deployment of clean hydrogen in the Middle East. The International Energy Agency considers Southeast Asia to be an important and growing hydrogen market as well. According to the announced projects, by 2030, blue hydrogen production in Southeast Asia is expected to rise from the current 3,000 tons per year to 430,000 tons per year. ■■Uncertainties still exist in industry development. It is worth noting that the \"Global Hydrogen Guide 2025\" shows that over the past 18 months, approximately 52 commercial-scale clean hydrogen projects were canceled, representing a production capacity of 4 million tons – about 3% of all such projects. Of these, 80% were early-stage green hydrogen projects. Ivana Djemelkova, CEO of the International Hydrogen Energy Committee, said that structural challenges such as persistently high interest rates and delays in the implementation of policies in certain regions continue to put pressure on the hydrogen industry. However, this does not mean that the development of hydrogen as a whole is slowing down; rather, it is undergoing a process of natural selection. It is understood that among the projects that were canceled, approximately 38% were affected by factors such as unclear policies, market uncertainty, and a lack of regulation ； About 27% were canceled due to factors such as funding challenges and insufficient implementation capabilities, and these mainly occurred in the United States and Europe**. Lan Shengjie, CEO of Linde Group and co-chair of the International Hydrogen Committee, said: “Over the past 5 years, the hydrogen industry has made significant progress, demonstrating its capacity for innovation and scaling up. To ensure a real impact on current projects, it is necessary to strengthen cooperation between businesses and the government, and to establish the frameworks and partnerships required to drive progress. ” However, the International Energy Agency predicts that, despite constraints such as high costs, demand and regulatory uncertainties, as well as slow infrastructure development, global annual production of low-carbon hydrogen is still expected to reach 37 million tons by 2030. Fatih Birol, Director-General of the International Energy Agency, said: “Despite economic headwinds and policy uncertainties, the hydrogen industry continues to show strong growth momentum.” Countries need to give priority to hydrogen energy in their policies, while also accelerating the development of related infrastructure. ”