South Korea likely to propose 20% of international hydrogen technology standards: Report

South Korea is expected to have 20% of proposals of hydrogen technology standards as it continues to propose top hydrogen economy technologies to the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) as a New Work Item Proposal (NP). The '2021 Hydrogen Economy Standard Forum' was hosted at Hyundai Motor Studio by the Korean Agency for Technology and Standards (KATS), which is part of the Ministry of Trade, Industry, and Energy. It assessed the results of worldwide standardisation. About 60 officials and specialists from Hyundai Motor and industry-academic-research institutions attended the forum, which was held both online and offline on Wednesday, October 6, reported news agency ANI. 

In April 2019, the KATS launched the 'Hydrogen Economy Standardization Strategy Roadmap,' with the goal of proposing 18 international standards by 2030. To date, the KATS has proposed three international standards, including fuel cells for excavators, laptop fuel cells, and renewable energy water electrolysis facilities. Besides, it also intends to submit three other items this year, including safety requirements for hydrogen vehicles in the event of an emergency, performance and safety evaluation technology for portable hydrogen fueling stations, and fault diagnostic and evaluation technology for fuel cell systems. 

South Korea will subsequently meet 1/3 of the specified targets of the hydrogen economy standardisation roadmap, according to the KATS, and will have 20% of new submissions for international standards. Meanwhile, Hyundai Motor revealed its aim to promote standardisation based on future hydrogen mobility technology at the meeting. Hyundai Motor also advocated that the development of hydrogen technology for various future transportation vehicles be expanded. In addition, the public and private sectors agreed to collaborate to ensure that technological development and standardisation operations in the industry run smoothly by forming a standardisation team that meets under the forum to discuss specifics. 

South Korean Navy launches 3,000-ton-class domestic submarine

It should be mentioned here that on September 28, the South Korean Navy launched a new 3,000-ton-class domestic submarine, capable of firing ballistic missiles, in an attempt to further strengthen its underwater defence capabilities, as per a report by the Korea Herald. It was the third and last Changbogo-III Batch-I submarine that South Korea produced with its own technology since 2007, as part of a 3.09 trillion won project, the report stated. The first submarine was launched in 2018 and deployed last month, while the second was launched in November 2020 and is expected to be delivered to the Navy next year, the report added. 

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