The UNDP Hydrogen Industry Conference 2021 was held in the Nanhai district of Foshan, South China's Guangdong province on Dec 8. 

In his speech at the conference, Bai Tao, mayor of Foshan, said the city will actively play the leading role of Guangdong's fuel cell vehicle demonstration city cluster, cultivate and expand the hydrogen energy industry as a measure to transform and upgrade the manufacturing industry, and further optimize its business environment. 

It will also improve policies to support the new energy industry, strive to introduce and cultivate high-end talents and high-quality industrial projects, develop the hydrogen energy industry chain, increase supplies of new energy and work for the high-quality development of the industry in the province, Bai noted. 

A plaque awarding ceremony for the UNDP-China GBA Hydrogen Economy Vocational Training Academy Demonstration Project was held at the event..

The project, which started construction this year, plans to set up six to eight disciplines at the Guangdong Polytechnic of Environmental Protection Engineering with a recruitment capacity of 3,000 students. It is expected to complete construction by 2025. 

Coinciding with the conference, the 5th International Hydrogen Energy & Fuel Cell Technology and Product Expo (CHFE 2021) was also held in Foshan. 

The Xianhu Laboratory from Foshan Hi-tech Zone displayed its cutting-edge technologies and products, attracting a number of businesspeople at the expo. 

The lab is committed to gathering and integrating high-end innovative resources at home and abroad, and creating a domestically first-class and internationally leading strategic sci-tech innovation platform to meet domestic needs for new energy and new materials, such as hydrogen energy and fuel cells. 

Vice-governor of Guangdong province Sun Zhiyang, representative of the United Nations Development Programme in China Beate Trankmann, former deputy director of the National Development and Reform Commission Zhang Xiaoqiang, a special researcher of the Counsellors' Office of the State Council Yao Jingyuan, and eight academicians at engineering academies in China, Canada and Australia addressed the conference on site or via video link.