Hyundai Motor Group has inaugurated HTWO ENERGY Cheongju, marking the company’s first integrated waste-to-hydrogen production and refueling facility operated directly by the group. The facility converts biogas extracted from locally sourced wastewater sludge into hydrogen, establishing a closed-loop production model designed to reduce supply chain costs compared to hydrogen sourced from distant coastal regions.
The facility was established in Cheongju with support from the Ministry of Climate, Energy and Environment, capitalizing on the city’s strategic geographic position in the center of South Korea’s peninsula. Cheongju was designated in 2025 by the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport as part of Korea’s Hydrogen City Creation Project and is developing into a regional hydrogen logistics and distribution hub. The initial facility produces approximately 500 kilograms of hydrogen daily, sufficient to fuel roughly 100 hydrogen fuel cell electric vehicles or 30 hydrogen fuel cell buses.
Beyond production and refueling operations, the facility includes the Hydrogen Academy, an exhibition and education space on the second floor dedicated to demonstrating the waste-to-hydrogen process and broader hydrogen ecosystem applications. Hyundai Motor Group plans substantial capacity expansion aligned with Cheongju’s organic waste infrastructure development, targeting an increase from 500 kilograms daily to two metric tons daily by 2030.
The Cheongju facility represents part of a broader global strategy by the group to develop localized waste-to-hydrogen ecosystems. Parallel initiatives are underway in Indonesia and Hong Kong, with the Hong Kong project announced in May 2026 utilizing landfill gas to produce hydrogen for tourism buses and airport shuttle services. The Indonesia project, announced in 2025, is currently under development and aims to convert landfill biogas into hydrogen, with potential applications informing future initiatives across ASEAN markets.