SK Innovation E&S said on the 29th that its subsidiary Hybus held a ceremony to mark the completion of the "Incheon Airport hydrogen mobility complex base."
A total of 14.3 billion won was invested in the complex base, an infrastructure that supports the transition to hydrogen mobility for commercial vehicles such as airport buses. It was built on a 2,771-square-meter site in the depot at Incheon Airport Terminal 2. The liquefied hydrogen station can charge 320 kilograms per hour, enough to fuel up to 240 large hydrogen buses per day.
The hydrogen mobility complex base receives a stable supply of hydrogen in connection with the liquefied hydrogen production base located in Seo-gu, Incheon. IGE, a subsidiary of SK Innovation E&S, established a system for liquefied hydrogen production, supply, and transport after the completion of the liquefied hydrogen plant in May 2024. It is the world's largest facility, with a single-plant capacity of 90 tons per day and about 30,000 tons per year.
Liquefied hydrogen is hydrogen made by cooling gaseous hydrogen to a cryogenic temperature of minus 253 degrees to turn it into a liquid. It is similar in structure to liquefied natural gas (LNG), which is made by cooling natural gas. In this process, the volume is reduced to about one-eight-hundredth that of gaseous hydrogen, making it advantageous for large-volume storage and transport. For each trip, gaseous hydrogen can carry 200 to 400 kilograms, while liquefied hydrogen can carry up to 3,000 kilograms.
Designating the complex base at Incheon Airport took into account the characteristics of concentrated nationwide transportation demand, including airport shuttles and limousine buses. According to the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport, the total traffic volume to and from roads such as the Incheon International Airport Expressway averages more than 172,000 vehicles per day. Of the 68 Incheon Airport shuttle buses, 36 have already been converted to hydrogen buses, with additional units to be introduced this year.
Jeon Young-jun, head of the new energy business division at SK Innovation E&S, said, "The Incheon Airport hydrogen mobility complex base will serve as a hub that provides a stable fuel supply to hydrogen buses traveling to and from airports nationwide," adding, "We will do our best to provide a competitive hydrogen supply infrastructure in connection with the Incheon liquefied hydrogen plant."