South Korea’s largest automaker Hyundai Motor received the baton to spearhead a multinational industry group to advocate the use of hydrogen as a major future energy source for mobility and other purposes to reduce emissions and adapt to climate change.

Yang Woong-chul, vice chairman of the R&D division at Hyundai Motor, was named as co-chairman during the second annual meeting of the Hydrogen Council held in Bonn, Germany on Monday, the company said in a statement. Hyundai Motor will also represent the global industry body.

Convened on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum Annual Meeting in Davos, Switzerland held early this year, the world’s leading industrial, automotive and energy companies teamed up to launch the council with an ambitious goal of reaching the 1.5 degrees Celsius target as agreed in the 2015 Paris Agreement.

The first Council had been represented by France’s Air Liquid and Japan’s Toyota Motor. Currently, a total of 28 companies are involved in the council, including Hyundai Motor, BMW, Daimler, Honda, Toyota, GM, Royal Dutch Shell and Alstom.

“To achieve the Paris Agreement target successfully, transitioning to the hydrogen energy system that causes zero emissions of greenhouse gases is essential. One in four to five cars will be powered by hydrogen at the beginning of the era of hydrogen society,” said Yang during his inaugural address delivered on Monday.

Yang wowed the audience by making his entrance to the stage in a hydrogen-powered concept car from Hyundai Motor, which will be released to the market early next year.

By Lee Seung-hoon and Minu Kim

[ⓒ Pulse by Maeil Business Newspaper & mk.co.kr, All rights reserved]