Introduction  The coordinated development of electricity and hydrogen is a key pathway to achieving dual carbon goals and serves as a crucial support for building a new power system. To promote the sustainable development and market promotion of China’s hydrogen energy industry, the multi-dimensional business operation models and development strategies for electric-hydrogen complementary and collaborative systems are proposed.

  Method  Firstly, the paper comprehensively reviewed the development trends in the electric-hydrogen field both domestically and internationally, and summarized the current status of typical electric-hydrogen projects. Secondly, the profitability mechanisms for electric-hydrogen complementary and collaborative system were analyzed, including the research on diverse hydrogen sales models, the exploration of electricity market revenue, and the assessment of carbon reduction economic value. Based on this basis, multi-dimensional business models for the electric-hydrogen complementary and collaborative system tailored to China's national conditions were proposed, and profitability was calculated under the boundary conditions such as different market conditions and electricity price mechanism.

  Result  The study shows that the electricity pricing mechanism in the spot market significantly guides hydrogen storage, helping to compensate for the efficiency losses in the electric-hydrogen conversion. Integrated utilization of electrolyzers and fuel cells for ancillary services is one of the key strategies to enhance profitability. Coordinating renewable energy hydrogen production with hydrogen sales can substantially improve overall economic benefits, and is also an effective transition from hydrogen sales profitability strategies to future electricity market revenues.

  Conclusion  Based on China's energy endowment characteristics and regional distribution, it is recommended that different regions explore the development of business models for electricity-hydrogen complementary and coordinated systems tailored to local conditions. These include clarifying market-oriented policy directions, guiding large-scale development, and expanding diverse end-use applications.