Evolutionary patterns and future trends of China’s hydrogen energy industry policy

Hydrogen energy, as a green and low-carbon secondary energy source, holds an important strategic position in the global energy transition. The hydrogen energy industry is characterized by a long industrial chain, multiple application scenarios, and volatility, and it requires a systematic policy framework to promote its development. Based on 2888 policy texts issued by Chinese central and local governments from 1995 to 2024, this paper systematically deconstructs the evolution paths, focus directions, and thematic evolution laws of hydrogen energy policies by using text mining techniques and LDA (Latent Dirichlet Allocation) thematic models. The study finds that the development of hydrogen energy policies in China is characterized by three phases called “Embryonic, Initiation, and Acceleration” and that differences greatly influence the introduction of local hydrogen energy policies in the level of economic development, industrial structure, geography, and resources, and that the focus of the policies has shifted from “technical research” to “industrial construction.” The documents issued by the same level of government exhibit consistent characteristics, and there are significant differences in focus and themes between different levels. In the future, policy direction can be improved by strengthening coordination between different levels of government and regional policy coordination, exploring the synergistic development mode of hydrogen energy and other energy sources, and promoting effective connections between policy supply and industrial development demand.