Last week saw the 9^th edition of the International Hydrogen and Fuel Cell Vehicle Congress & Exhibition (FCVC 2025) held in Shanghai. I joined the team from Impact Coatings (China) during the three days, and I’m happy to here share my reflections from the event, and on developments in general in the Chinese hydrogen economy.

It was great to be back at FCVC, meeting existing and potential customers and partners, and learning more about the developments in the hydrogen ecosystem in China. Although the event was slightly smaller this year, the relevant hydrogen companies were present, both domestic and international.

Impact Coatings (China) had a booth at the exhibition, and we participated and presented at a joint session organized by Business Sweden.

It is clear China stands strong when it comes to hydrogen. The country is the global leader in deploying fuel cell electric vehicles (FCEVs), and most likely already in the deployment of renewable hydrogen production projects. Established companies in the supply chain continue to grow, powered by ambitious government programs.

In 2023-2024 China accounted for about 50% of global sales FCEVs, which annual sales reaching about 6000 units, primarily heavy-duty commercial vehicles like trucks and buses. There was an estimated 25,000 FCEVs deployed totally in the country at the beginning of 2025.

In order to accelerate the roll-out aiming at government targets for FCEVs, the Ministry of Finance in April 2025 announced the allocation of 2.34 billion yuan ($321.5 million) for the third year of the ‘FCEV demonstration initiative’ that includes 28 urban districts within 10 provincial regions, including Beijing, Shanghai, Tangshan, Zhengzhou and Tianjin. This is an increase of 44.2% over the second year’s funding.

According to presenters at FCVC 2025 the program has served its purpose well when it comes to demonstrating the technology and reliability of FCEVs, while infrastructure, hydrogen supply and cost of hydrogen need further focus to support the ambitious targets. A sign addressing the full supply chain, the National Energy Administration (NAE) in June announced an extensive pilot initiative to scale up hydrogen technology, infrastructure and applications. Significant focus is made on hydrogen production, storage and transportation, large parts being on green hydrogen production and infrastructure.

Further proof of China’s commitment to hydrogen, earlier this year, hydrogen energy was officially included in the ‘Energy Law of the People’s Republic of China’, clearly defining its legal status as ‘actively promoting the development and utilization of hydrogen energy.’ The central government has listed it as a key development direction for cutting-edge emerging industries, with increasing policy support.

The ‘China Hydrogen Development Report (2025)’, compiled and released by NAE, shows that by the end of 2024, the cumulative installed capacity of global renewable hydrogen projects exceeded 2.5 million tons per year, with China accounting for over 50%, gradually becoming a leading country in the global development of renewable hydrogen and related industries.

In this environment I am very pleased with Impact Coatings’ strong regional presence, where we can support both the fuel cell and electrolyzer ecosystems. Our Coating Service Center in Shanghai is a volume production facility with automated equipment, end-to-end production processes, dedicated personnel, and premier expertise and focus on supporting the hydrogen industry.

Impact Coatings in China also provides support to a growing number of customers that use the company’s INLINECOATER™ PVD systems in their inhouse coating operations, currently for PEM fuel cell bipolar plates, but with a coating platform well suited also for electrolyzer components.

During my presentation at FCVC 2025 I talked about the solutions that Impact Coatings provides to hydrogen industry customers and partners in China. It includes the Premium FC coating for PEM fuel cells for heavy-duty applications, a coating that fulfils the tough performance and 30,000-hour durability requirements set by the industry.

I also talked about new technologies, such as iridium oxide coatings that can drastically reduce iridium loading, with the potential to reduce the cost of PEM electrolyzers, and as a result, the cost of producing green hydrogen.

Overall, an insightful and successful FCVC 2025.  Now, back to the hard work supporting and supplying current and future customers and partners in a forward-looking Chinese hydrogen community.

Yaowen Wang
Regional President, China

“Our collaboration throughout many years with Impact Coatings has been of great importance for the successful establishment of our large inhouse PVD coating facility based on several PVD coating units from Impact Coatings.

By utilizing the high flexibility and quality of the PVD machines from Impact Coatings we have been able to build up a highly efficient coating production facility for our extensive portfolio of protective and decorative PVD coatings all matching the world class level of our high-end eyewear frames.”

Impact Coatings has entered into a collaboration with Smoltek Hydrogen to explore the potential integration of Smoltek Hydrogen’s carbon nanofiber (CNF) technology into the Impact Coatings INLINECOATER™ series of PVD systems.

Carbon nanofibers have the potential to significantly enhance the performance of coatings used in PEM electrolyzers and PEM fuel cells – two critical applications in the transition to green hydrogen.

The aim of the collaboration is to evaluate whether Smoltek’s proprietary CNF technology for growth of nanofiber can be effectively integrated into Impact Coatings’ INLINECOATER systems, and to validate the scalability and industrial feasibility of manufacturing CNF-enhanced coatings in volume production environments.

Jonas Nilsson, CEO of Impact Coatings:
“We look forward to working with Smoltek Hydrogen to explore how their innovative CNF technology can complement and strengthen our coating technology offering. By combining our expertise in PVD coatings with their groundbreaking materials, we aim to develop solutions that meet future needs in hydrogen production and fuel cells.”

Ellinor Ehrnberg, CEO of Smoltek Hydrogen:
“This collaboration with Impact Coatings is an important opportunity to further explore the potential of our CNF technology and bring it closer to commercialization. By combining our expertise in carbon nanofibers with Impact Coatings’ experience in PVD technology, we look forward to jointly exploring new ways to enhance performance in critical applications such as PEM electrolyzers and fuel cells.”

The INLINECOATER™ series, comprising the IC500, IC500+, and IC2000, will now be available with optional HiPIMS (High Power Impulse Magnetron Sputtering) technology as a customer-specific feature. HiPIMS enables improved coating uniformity and performance in tailored applications. The technology requires specialized power supplies, which will be provided by Swedish company Ionautics AB, a spin-off from the research environment at Linköping University.

“Together with Ionautics, we have successfully tested the HiPIMS technology at one of our INLINECOATER customers, with very positive results,” said Kristian Hillgren, CTO at Impact Coatings. The test involved retrofitting an existing INLINECOATER IC500 with HiPIMS power supplies from Ionautics. The retrofit was carried out jointly by engineers from both companies, with coating process optimization conducted in close collaboration with the customer’s experts.

Successful tests were performed on the INLINECOATER™ IC500 using HiPIMS power supplies from Ionautics

HiPIMS technology will be offered as an option for all machine types in the INLINECOATER series, with first deliveries expected in Q3 2025. Retrofit solutions will also be available for existing INLINECOATER systems upon request.

Jonas Nilsson, CEO of Impact Coatings, commented:
“By combining our expertise in building machines for high-volume production with Ionautics’ deep knowledge of coatings and power supply technology, we can quickly deliver new, commercially viable solutions that meet the demands of large-scale manufacturing.”

Johan Ahlström, CEO of Ionautics, added:
“Impact Coatings’ systems – designed for both prototyping and high-volume production – together with the collaborative opportunities at their Coating Service Center in Linköping, make them an ideal partner for commercializing next-generation HiPIMS-based coatings.”

About HiPIMS

HiPIMS, or High Power Impulse Magnetron Sputtering, is an advanced physical vapor deposition (PVD) technology that uses short, high-power pulses to create dense, uniform, and high-quality thin films. Compared to conventional sputtering, HiPIMS enables better control over film structure, improved adhesion, and enhanced performance in demanding applications. The technology is particularly suited for precision coatings in industries such as automotive, electronics, and hydrogen energy.