$200m for promoting hydrogen over 5-7 years, says Chaturvedi
India is looking towards to kick-start the hydrogen ecosystem development, which is estimated to call for US$200 million investment over the next five to seven years.
“We have taken various initiatives with respect to the greater use of hydrogen in India’s energy mix,” Petroleum and Natural Gas Minister Dharmendra Pradhan said at a RoundTable on “Hydrogen Economy: New Delhi Dialogue – 2021” on 15 April 2021.
The Government recently announced National Hydrogen Mission in the Union Budget 2021 for making a hydrogen roadmap for the country.
India is expected to invest US$200 million in promoting hydrogen over the next five-seven years, according to Indu Shekhar Chaturvedi, secretary of the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE).
Pradhan elaborated, “We are working on a pilot project on Blue Hydrogen, Hydrogen CNG (H-CNG) and Green Hydrogen. Through technological advancements, we are blending hydrogen with compressed natural gas for use as transportation fuel as well as an industrial input to refineries.
Fifty buses in Delhi are plying on blended hydrogen in Compressed Natural Gas on a pilot basis, the Minister pointed out, adding, “We plan to scale it up in the coming months across major cities.”
“Energy is integral to support our fast-growing economy, and we are developing an energy sector which will be growth-centric, industry-friendly and environment-conscious. We have the onerous task of ensuring energy justice and to end energy poverty in the country. This requires ample access to affordable energy to improve the lives of Indians coupled with the need to have a smaller carbon footprint.”
Pradhan said that the contours of India’s energy transition are changing fast. The Government is developing a clear roadmap for a self-reliant India or an AatmaNirbhar Bharat, which seeks to place India as a manufacturing hub well-integrated with global supply chains. In this effort, energy will have a defining role.
He highlighted that hydrogen has great potential to emerge as a future source of energy. “The enthusiasm about hydrogen has a simple reason: whether it’s used in a fuel cell or burned to create heat, wherever hydrogen replaces fossil fuels, it slows global warming.
“Inclusion of “Hydrogen” as an energy carrier in the future energy portfolio presents a unique opportunity to address emerging energy vectors, including power to gas, power to power, and power to mobility and even vehicle to grid applications.”
He went on, “Diversification of our energy basket would be the key lever enabling this transition. However, it is equally important that the new energy-mix options synergize and co-exist with the established base technology already operational in the respective countries, in which, huge capital investments have been made. That’s why the emergence of hydrogen at the centre stage is a welcome development.”
The Petroleum and Natural Gas Ministry is committed to augment the hydrogen supply chain infrastructure in the country.
“Presently, as in the case of other countries, our petroleum sector is the largest producer of hydrogen for various refinery process operations. Hence, we realize petroleum sector’s capability to produce hydrogen molecules, store and trade as gas, making it a natural votary of this new energy form. It provides us an opportunity to utilize existing business models and infrastructure unlike other e-options.”
Hydrogen is also capable of aligning with the Ministry’s other flagship schemes, like the promotion of compressed biogas under the Sustainable Alternative Towards Affordable Transportation (SATAT) scheme or promoting the gas-based economy or other initiatives on Waste-to-Energy, he elaborated. Such an integration will impart much more flexibility and capacity utilization to the vast infrastructure available or being created in India.
He said that the utility of hydrogen is not going to be limited only to the transport sector. The maturity of the ecosystem can be accelerated through its usage as a decarbonizing agent for a range of sectors, including industry covering chemicals, iron, steel, fertilizer and refining, transport, heat and power.
Pradhan said that by establishing synergies with natural gas, hydrogen can be easily adopted in the energy mix without seeking major infrastructural overhauling. “We are looking forward to introduce H-CNG as an intermittent technology in a big way for both automotive and domestic cooking applications.”
India’s refineries are planning to leverage the available surplus hydrogen capacities in gray form for meeting the initial demand in mainstreaming hydrogen.
“One of such projects is underway at our Gujarat refinery of Indian Oil wherein the combination of hydrogen production through natural gas and its hyphenation with the carbon capture technology will result in the production of blue hydrogen. Multiple buses powered by fuel cells will be covering various iconic routes. Efforts are underway to leverage the vast CNG pipeline infrastructure to reduce the transportation cost of hydrogen,” said Pradhan. #OPEC #energy #hydrogen #renewables #environment #investment #tenders #projects /fiinews.com
