China has accounted for about 50% of global sales of FCEVs in recent years, primarily rolling out commercial FCEVs, like heavy-duty trucks and buses. There were an estimated 25,000 FCEVs in the country at the beginning of 2025, where heavy-duty applications are also expected to dominate future deployment. Advantages in commercial applications, such as 5-10 minute refueling time, around 600-km range, reliable cold-weather performance, and significantly lower weight than batteries, make the hydrogen fuel cell powertrain ideal for logistics and long-distance transportation for the vast distances across China.

Meanwhile, Hydrogen Energy is one of the priority strategic industries in China’s new 15^th Five-Year Plan for 2026-2030.

The document of “Recommendations” for the five-year plan was adopted at the Fourth Plenary Session of the Central Committee on October 20-23, 2025. The Recommendations propose to create emerging pillar industries and accelerate the development of strategic emerging industry clusters such as new energy, new materials, and aerospace.

The Recommendations also propose forward-looking planning for future industries, promoting quantum technology, biomanufacturing, hydrogen energy and nuclear fusion energy, brain-computer interfaces, embody intelligence, and sixth-generation mobile communications as new economic growth drivers.

One area that is not expected to be included in the forthcoming Five-Year Plan is NEVs (New Energy Vehicles), primarily due to global overcapacity for battery-electric cars. While NEVs include FCEVs, the focus on hydrogen energy, including its production, infrastructure and applications for hydrogen, is expected to have an overall positive push forward also for the FCEV industry.

The 15^th Five-Year Plan is expected to be released and adopted in March 2026.

To meet forecasted volumes, the Impact Coatings (China) Coating Service Center in Shanghai already 2024 received its first high-volume INLINECOATER™ IC2000 PVD equipment, which is primarily used for the Premium FC bipolar plate coating for PEM fuel cells used in heavy-duty FCEV applications.

The facility has been optimized for bipolar plates and related hydrogen components, featuring an automated cleaning line, robotic material handling, as well as automated post-coating inspection, all taking place in a cleanroom environment.

“China is today the global leader in the roll-out of fuel cell trucks and other commercial fuel cell vehicles. Our Premium FC coating provides the cost-efficiency, robustness and long life required by the OEMs and their fuel cell stack manufacturers,” said Yaowen Wang, Regional President, China.