(Yicai) March 20 -- Energy giant China Petroleum & Chemical, also known as Sinopec, has joined hands with more than 10 leading hydrogen companies to release China's first standards for integrated hydrogen stations to advance green development with a reduced cost of clean fuel.

The group revealed the guidelines for hydrogen production and refueling stations yesterday. An integrated facility with both functions can lower the cost of hydrogen, a clean-burning alternative to fossil fuels which is still difficult to transport.

There is a need to specify the related industry standards, especially regarding the technical requirements of equipment and the method of heat supply, the Beijing-based company said, adding that the current standards target refueling stations without production.

Sinopec has operated two integrated stations based on the guidelines for nearly a year and they surpass their peers in terms of technical layout, control, and safety, and make hydrogen more than 20 percent cheaper in comparison to traditional stations.

The scale of the hydrogen industry remains small so large-scale application is needed to improve quality and to reduce costs to develop sustainably, said Zhang Guoqiang, chairman of SinoHytec, a listed hydrogen fuel cell company.

Sinopec runs 128 hydrogen refueling stations, more than any other company in the world after years of network expansion to lead the Chinese landscape of the next-generation fuel.

Editor: Emmi Laine