Hydrogen fuel cell commercial vehicles in China: Evaluation of carbon emission reduction and its economic value

Fuel cell commercial vehicles (FCCVs) coupled with hydrogen energy will play a critical role in moving towards a low-carbon transport sector. However, the economic value of FCCVs carbon-emissions reduction have been largely overlooked. By adapting the GREET model to Chinese scenarios, this article focuses on the FCCVs carbon-emissions reduction and their economic value, referring to carbon price. The carbon-emissions reduction effect in the FCCVs life cycle ranges from 14.53% to 70.19%, and its economic value ranges from 0.02 to 1.19 yuan/kg-H2 (0.003-0.18 USD/kg-H2), achieving by providing carbon-based subsidies. Importantly, the development of fuel-cell logistics vehicles and fuel-cell heavy-duty trucks should be prioritized. In the future of 2030 and 2060, the value could almost compensate half of the current hydrogen supply cost at some 80 yuan/kg-H2 (12.48 USD/kg-H2). The study thus also provides a scientific reference for policies to extend hydrogen energy into the Chinese carbon trading system.(c) 2023 Hydrogen Energy Publications LLC. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.