Estonia and South Korea share a passion for novel technologies and are rapidly expanding their cooperation along those lines. One common interest between the two distant countries is hydrogen, with both looking to significantly cut carbon emissions across sectors. Estonia, with its robust CleanTech sector and world-first nation-wide Hydrogen Valley, has a lot to offer to international partners in that regard.
To that end, Hydrogen Valley Estonia and Chungnam Technopark recently signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) to advance the hydrogen industry. The MOU aims to exchange information on low-carbon energy policies and foster organic cooperation in hydrogen-focused application fields.
Chungnam, short for Chungcheongnam-do, is a province in the southwestern part of South Korea, known as a hub for industries such as petrochemicals, steel, and automotive manufacturing. Established in 1999, Chungnam Technology Park provides advanced business incubation and technical support services while focusing on developing future growth engines.
Valdo Kalm, CEO of the Port of Tallinn, who signed the MOU on behalf of Hydrogen Valley Estonia, expressed his expectations for cooperation with Chungnam’s hydrogen ecosystem and hopes that this collaboration will allow both sides to jointly lead the global hydrogen agenda.
South Korea’s ambitions for hydrogen are robust. Launched in 2019, its Hydrogen Economy Roadmap outlines a vision to develop a full-fledged hydrogen economy by 2040. Goals include expanding the annual hydrogen market from 130,000 tons to 5.26 million tons and deploying 6.2 million hydrogen vehicles, including 310 refuelling stations, by 2040.
In Estonia, hydrogen adoption is also on the agenda, as it aligns with a wider commitment to achieving carbon neutrality by 2050. Established in 2023, Hydrogen Valley Estonia unites various stakeholders, including Alexela, Eesti Energia, Port of Tallinn, the University of Tartu, the City of Tartu, and the Estonian Hydrogen Technologies Association.
The key points of the new agreement include information exchange for the development of the hydrogen industry, support for B2B matching for global business, and networking related to the hydrogen industry. Chungnam TP stated that through this agreement, they plan to promote corporate support, business cooperation, and other initiatives to help local innovation cluster hydrogen companies in Chungnam enter overseas markets and establish a global hydrogen ecosystem.
“We expect that this MOU will lay the foundation for cooperation in fostering local hydrogen companies. We will continue to collaborate with Hydrogen Valley Estonia to enhance the global competitiveness of Chungnam’s hydrogen industry and expand the global hydrogen agenda,” added Seo Gyu-seok, the Director of Chungnam Technopark.
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