South Korea has launched a KRW40.9 billion (US$30 million) research programme to develop technologies for recycling and reusing components from end-of-life hydrogen-powered vehicles, aiming to recover critical minerals and reduce reliance on imported resources.
The four-year project, which began this month and will run through 2029, is backed by KRW32.9 billion in government funding and KRW7.95 billion from the private sector, according to the country’s Ministry of Climate, Energy and Environment.
The initiative comes as South Korea’s hydrogen vehicle fleet continues to expand, raising expectations that large numbers of fuel cell vehicles will eventually reach the end of their operating lives.
The number of registered hydrogen vehicles in the country rose from about 19,000 in 2021 to 34,000 in 2023 and exceeded 45,000 in 2025, government data showed. Over the same period, cumulative electric vehicle registrations climbed from 220,000 to 890,000.
Unlike conventional vehicles, hydrogen-powered vehicles contain high pressure hydrogen storage tanks and fuel cell systems that require specialised dismantling procedures because of the risk of gas leaks or explosions. Many components also contain valuable materials, including platinum and rare earth elements, making disposal economically unattractive.
The government said the programme would focus on three areas.
The first involves developing technologies to safely remove residual hydrogen from storage tanks and dismantle key components, including fuel-cell stacks, hydrogen tanks and drive motors. Researchers will also establish performance assessment standards to determine whether components can be reused.
The second aims to repurpose components that still have remaining service life. Fuel cell stacks and hydrogen storage tanks will be combined into electricity generation systems that could be deployed at construction sites, remote islands and environmentally-friendly vessels where power infrastructure is limited.
The third area focuses on recovering rare earth elements and other critical minerals from permanent magnets used in vehicle drive motors. Researchers will develop automated systems to separate magnets from discarded motors and extract high-purity rare earth materials using environmentally-friendly processes.
Recovered materials would then be fed back into domestic manufacturing supply chains, including the production of new drive motors, creating a circular resource system, the government said.
South Korea, like many countries, relies heavily on imported rare earth materials used in electric motors and other clean energy technologies. Officials said successful development of recycling technologies could strengthen resource security while reducing environmental risks associated with disposing of hydrogen vehicles.
“End-of-life hydrogen vehicles are not simply waste but future resources containing key assets such as fuel cells and rare-earth permanent magnets,” Kim Go-eung, director-general for resource circulation policy at the ministry, said in a statement.
Kim added the government would support efforts to ensure that technologies developed through the programme are commercialised and help establish a recycling ecosystem for hydrogen vehicles.
