Platinum metals fundamentally key to China’s Five-Year Plan, WPIC reports

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This audio is brought to you by Endress and Hauser, a global leader in process and laboratory measurement technology, offering a broad portfolio of instruments, solutions and services for industrial process measurement and automation. Platinum group metals (PGMs) are fundamentally key to the delivery of China's 15th Five-Year Plan to 2030, Shanghai Platinum Week 2026 has served to highlight. Founded and organised by the World Platinum Investment Council (WPIC), Shanghai Platinum Week this year attracted a record 713 in-person attendees, up 30% on 2025. During the agenda-packed week, it was reported that China had earmarked close to $300-billion for AI infrastructure expansion and PGM-based hydrogen production was being increased in China at a faster pace than anywhere else on the planet. "The prospect of significant growth from AI-related platinum demand is an overlay that the market is only just beginning to appreciate and China's hydrogen scale-up is supported by ambitious deployment targets for PGM-based hydrogen production and PGM-based fuel cell electric vehicle assembly. On current fundamentals, the value proposition for platinum remains compelling," WPIC CEO Trevor Raymond stated in a media release to Mining Weekly. AI-related applications that are poised to benefit from PGMs include silicone production, hard disk drives, thin-film coatings on semiconductors and sensors, electronic grade glass fabrics for printed circuit boards, crucibles needed to grow industrial crystals for optical interconnects, and hydrogen fuel cells for data centre back-up power. Understanding the emerging AI-related platinum demand and the additional value it could bring is viewed as being important for both strategic, long-term investors and also short-term market participants. The focus on growing AI and new energy technologies also underscores why, in China, the strategic and economic importance of PGMs is fundamental to the delivery of key aspects of the nation's 15th Five-Year Plan. Shanghai Platinum Week 2026 has served to highlight the trends underpinning China's PGM demand requirements, as well as the ways in which supply from PGM mining can continue to meet these needs, either by continuing to maximise value from established resources, or by developing new orebodies. "The platinum market is forecast to record its fourth consecutive deficit in 2026, leading to further depletion of above ground stocks, with just under three months' worth of cover to meet global demand now expected by the end of 2026," Raymond stated in the WPIC release, which coincided with these other announcements from entirely different sources: Global business-to-business market research firm MarketsandMarkets reporting its expectation that the hydrogen market will reach the $312-billion level by 2030 and IDTechEx seeing a global green hydrogen market of $166-billion by 2037.Fuel Cell and Hydrogen Energy Association of the US drawing attention during its webinar on July 15 to the various pathways that hydrogen and fuel cells are taking into maritime applications and the maritime industry's use of fuel cells and hydrogen as a source of propulsion amid increasing pressure to comply with international climate regulations.Plug Power of the US being awarded the front-end engineering design contract for the supply of a 275 MW PGM-based proton exchange membrane (PEM) electrolyser system for Hy2gen Canada's Courant project in Baie-Comeau in Québec. Nel PEM Electrolyser company of Norway reporting 31%-higher first-quarter revenue driven mainly by small-scale hydrogen electrolysers and a 96%-higher second-quarter PEM order intake.Air Products Europe's new liquid hydrogen liquefier in the Port of Rotterdam being more than 65% complete.Germany's green hydrogen pipeline network now spanning France, Belgium, Holland and Austria.GeoPura and Forth Ports agreeing to produce on-site green hydrogen at the Port of Tilbury in London.Bosch introducing a hydrogen fuel cell system for bus...

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