China has approved the Xinjiang–Chengdu-Chongqing economic circle for a national pilot programme on comprehensive hydrogen  applications, opening the way for closer cross-regional cooperation between Xinjiang and the Chengdu-Chongqing region.

On October 17, the Chengdu Municipal Commission of Economy and Information Technology confirmed that the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, the Ministry of Finance and the National Development and Reform Commission had jointly approved five urban clusters for the programme, including the Xinjiang–Chengdu-Chongqing economic circle and the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region.

The four-year pilot programme is designed to expand hydrogen applications across multiple sectors and promote coordinated development between regions with complementary resources and industrial capabilities.

The Xinjiang–Chengdu-Chongqing partnership brings together Xinjiang’s renewable energy resources and the Chengdu-Chongqing region’s strengths in equipment manufacturing, automotive production and hydrogen applications.

Xinjiang has abundant wind and solar resources, giving it significant potential to produce green hydrogen. The Chengdu-Chongqing region, meanwhile, has an established manufacturing base and a range of potential hydrogen applications. The cross-regional initiative aims to connect hydrogen production in western China with industrial end users, supporting wider hydrogen deployment in transport and manufacturing.

Under the national pilot programme, the initiative will focus on promoting hydrogen fuel cell vehicles, replacing conventional industrial feedstocks with green hydrogen, and developing hydrogen metallurgy. It will also support the development of core hydrogen technologies and equipment, alongside the construction of hydrogen refuelling infrastructure.

The programme is intended to strengthen links between upstream hydrogen resources and downstream industrial applications, helping advance the development of China’s hydrogen industry.

Compiled from ：FuelCellChina