SeAH Besteel becomes first South Korean firm to secure core hydrogen infrastructure material technologies

South Korean specialty steelmaker SeAH Besteel has announced that it is the first company in the country to independently secure manufacturing technologies for two materials regarded as critical to scaling up hydrogen infrastructure: high-pressure seamless pipe for hydrogen transport and hydrogen storage alloys for non-mechanical compressors. The breakthrough was achieved through joint research and development projects led by the Korea Planning & Evaluation Institute of Industrial Technology, working alongside the Korea Institute of Industrial Technology and other national partners.

The newly developed seamless pipe is rated to 100 bar, with a yield strength of 485 MPa, and has been engineered to resist hydrogen embrittlement so its structural properties hold up in hydrogen environments. This is a significant jump from Korea’s existing hydrogen pipeline network, which typically operates below 20 bar and limits large-scale transport. Alongside this, the company has developed a hydrogen storage alloy that allows non-mechanical compressors to reach pressures of up to 900 bar, above the 700-bar standard used for hydrogen vehicle refuelling, without needing a motor pump. Because such compressors avoid the mechanical components that account for roughly half the construction cost of a typical hydrogen refuelling station, the technology is expected to significantly improve the economics of building out refuelling infrastructure.

SeAH Besteel said it would now move towards full-scale commercialisation following demonstration-plant verification, aiming to reduce Korea’s reliance on imported hydrogen infrastructure materials and to build a more resilient domestic supply chain. A company representative said the achievement was “a major leap forward in strengthening supply chain resilience and improving the economic viability of building hydrogen infrastructure.”