On March 20, reporters learned at a press conference held by the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT) for the High-Quality Development Implementation Plan for Energy-Saving Equipment (2026–2028) that water electrolysis hydrogen production equipment has become one of the six key focus areas of the Plan.

"Water electrolysis hydrogen production equipment serves as the core foundation of the hydrogen energy industry chain. It is of great significance for promoting the sound and orderly development of the hydrogen energy industry and supporting energy conservation and carbon reduction in key industries," said Wang Peng, Director General of the Department of Energy Conservation and Comprehensive Utilization at MIIT. In recent years, China’s water electrolysis hydrogen production equipment has developed rapidly, with manufacturing capacity leading the world globally, and electrolyzer production capacity accounting for nearly 60% of the global total. Among them, alkaline electrolyzers have achieved full industrial chain localization, and the maximum hydrogen output of a single electrolyzer has exceeded 5,000 standard cubic meters per hour.

To further advance the high-quality development of water electrolysis hydrogen production equipment, MIIT has put forward targeted measures in three aspects.

First, upgrade equipment technology. Enterprises are encouraged to develop high-efficiency, low-cost and high-performance water electrolysis hydrogen production equipment. A target has been set that by 2028, the DC power consumption of mass-produced water electrolysis hydrogen production equipment under rated operating conditions will be lower than 4.2 kilowatt-hours per standard cubic meter. Through standardization, modularization and digitalization, efforts will be made to continuously improve equipment efficiency and reliability, reduce comprehensive costs, and promote the high-end and large-scale development of water electrolysis hydrogen production equipment.

Second, expand application scenarios of equipment. In recent years, the application scenarios of water electrolysis hydrogen production equipment have rapidly expanded from power plant cooling, electronic processing and other fields to integrated hydrogen production and refueling stations, hydrogen production from renewable energy, hydrogen energy storage and other sectors. Focusing on three major application scenarios — hydrogen production from renewable energy, stable grid-connected hydrogen production, and comprehensive utilization of industrial waste heat — the Implementation Plan proposes to build integrated system solutions, comprehensively enhance the adaptability, economic efficiency and operational stability of water electrolysis hydrogen production equipment and actively expand its application scenarios.

Third, promote the sound and orderly development of the industry. MIIT will study and formulate industry regulatory conditions for water electrolysis hydrogen production equipment, and promote the establishment of a technical committee for hydrogen energy standardization in the industrial sector. It will actively build a standard system for water electrolysis hydrogen production equipment covering the entire industrial chain, revise mandatory national standards for product energy efficiency of such equipment, and improve relevant standards including long-term reliability assessment methods and carbon footprint accounting methods for water electrolysis hydrogen production equipment, so as to lay a solid institutional foundation for the long-term sound and orderly development of the industry.