Holding the First Hydrogen Festival in Namie Town, Fukushima Prefecture

Namie Town and Sumitomo Corporation held the first Hydrogen Festival in the town on August 22.

The town and Sumitomo Corporation concluded a partnership agreement on hydrogen use and community development in January 2021, seeking to develop a sustainable and lively community by the use of distributed clean energy sources , such as hydrogen.

The festival was organized for children living in Fukushima Prefecture as an activity conducted under the agreement. With support from TOYOTA MOTOR CORP. , AMLUX TOYOTA and KINTO, the event was intended to raise locals’ awareness of hydrogen energy and popularize its use, and to create a vigorous community in the town. At the festival, measures were implemented to prevent the spread of COVID-19.

Many children and their parents and guardians visited the venue, where they experienced riding hydrogen fuel cell go-karts and attended a class on hydrogen fuel cells, where they learned how hydrogen is produced.

Participants made comments such as, “It was very comfortable to ride the fuel cell vehicle! It ran smoothly and didn’t make much engine noise,” and “I learned that hydrogen is an excellent clean energy source. I hope that more hydrogen-fueled products become available for our family.”

Sumitomo Corporation will continue to organize and hold events to make the new energy source of hydrogen familiar to more people, and that will also help greatly revitalize Namie Town.