Great Wall Motor bets big on hydrogen fuel cell vehicles

Great Wall Motor Co Ltd, one of the country's largest SUV and pickup manufacturers, is making hydrogen fuel cell electric vehicles a new focus for its business, expecting it to become a vital sector in the long term, according to a senior company executive.

The company's first fuel cell model based on a dedicated electric vehicle platform is scheduled to debut in 2020, and the first fuel cell fleet will be launched during the 2022 Winter Olympics, said Hu Shujie, senior vice-president of the Baoding, Hebei province-based automaker.

"Fuel cells are a mainstream (new energy) technology internationally, and the commercial application of fuel cells has already begun in China," said Hu.