Worldwide, over 1,000 hydrogen refueling stations in operation - China is also leading here.

According to the analysis "Global Market for Hydrogen Fueling Stations 2023," there is a dynamic global development in the establishment of hydrogen fueling stations. China leads in the number of stations, while the USA, according to the study authors, is lagging in the adoption of the alternative fuel. However, the rest of the world is quickly embracing hydrogen to meet its energy needs.

In Asia, China is followed by Japan

The second-highest number of hydrogen stations after China is in Japan, followed by Korea, explained Shakeel Ahmed, Senior Analyst at Information Trends. Other Asia-Pacific countries with aggressive plans for deploying hydrogen stations include Australia, New Zealand, and India. Four other Asia-Pacific countries have also established hydrogen stations.

Germany leads in Europe

So far, Germany is the only European country with more than 100 hydrogen stations, according to the study. Other European countries pushing the expansion of the hydrogen station network include France, the United Kingdom, Slovenia, the Netherlands, Switzerland, and also Spain.

According to the study, the hydrogen fuel cell ecosystem in Europe is growing rapidly, but hydrogen refueling stations have also been established to a limited extent in the Middle East and Africa. Including usage in the Middle East and Africa, a total of 30 countries in the region have established hydrogen refueling stations.

“Most of the hydrogen refueling stations established so far have been designed for hydrogen fuel cell passenger cars,” said Ahmed. “However, we are observing an acceleration in the deployment of hydrogen refueling stations for commercial vehicles as well as for locomotives and seagoing ships.”