Government has formally approved National Green Hydrogen Mission With the stated objective of making India a global hub for the production of green hydrogen.
The Union Cabinet on Wednesday approved a mission outlay of Rs 19,744 crore aimed at creating export opportunities for green hydrogen and its derivatives; Decarbonisation of the energy sector to reduce dependence on imported fossil fuels and use in mobility applications; and development of indigenous manufacturing capabilities.
The ultimate aim is to fuel key sectors of the economy using hydrogen which is created by splitting water by an electrical process called electrolysis using a device called an electrolyzer which is entirely powered by renewable energy.
hydrogen as a fuel
Hydrogen, the most common element in nature, exists only in combination with other elements, and is extracted from naturally occurring compounds such as water (which is a combination of two hydrogen atoms and one oxygen atom). Hydrogen is a clean molecule, but the process to extract it is energy intensive.
While hydrogen’s potential as a clean fuel source has a history of nearly 150 years, it was only after the oil price shock of the 1970s that the possibility of hydrogen as a replacement for fossil fuels was seriously considered. Three carmakers – Japan’s Honda and Toyota, and South Korea’s Hyundai – have since moved decisively to commercialize the technology, albeit on a limited scale.
The sources and processes from which hydrogen is obtained are classified by color tabs. Hydrogen produced from fossil fuels is called gray hydrogen, which makes up the bulk of hydrogen produced today. Hydrogen generated from fossil fuels with carbon capture and storage options is referred to as blue hydrogen, while hydrogen generated using electrolyzers powered by renewable energy sources is referred to as green hydrogen.
Green Hydrogen Efficiency
Green hydrogen has distinct advantages. One, it is a clean burning molecule that can decarbonize many sectors including iron and steel, chemicals and transportation. Two, renewable energy that cannot be stored or used by the grid can be channeled to produce hydrogen.
Green hydrogen is not currently commercially viable. The current cost in India is around Rs 350-400 per kg; It is likely to be viable only at a cost of production of less than Rs 100 per kg. This is the goal of the Hydrogen Energy Mission.
With built-in subsidy support and a government-backed R&D push, it plans to target the low cost of renewable energy generation and reduce the cost of electrolyzers to make the production of green hydrogen cost-competitive. Green hydrogen could eventually replace fossil fuels and fossil fuel-based feedstocks in fertilizer production, petroleum refining, steel production and transportation applications.
The United States and the European Union have already pledged billions of dollars in incentives for green hydrogen projects. India’s mission was first announced by the Prime Minister in his Independence Day speech in 2021.
The Ministry of New and Renewable Energy is in the process of formulating guidelines for a plan that seeks to promote the development of at least 5 million metric tonnes (MMT) of green hydrogen generation capacity per year, including about 125 additional renewable energy capacity. Is. gigawatts (GW) by 2030.
A large part of this is a proposed strategic intervention for the Green Hydrogen Transition Program (SIGHT), under which two financial incentive mechanisms – targeting the domestic manufacture of electrolyzers and the production of green hydrogen – have been promoted to reduce fossil fuel imports. and reduction in annual greenhouse gas emissions by 2030.
The draft mission document proposes a major push for hydrogen in the auto sector as well as support for the production and deployment of green hydrogen, along with research and development for fuel cell development and pilot projects for fuel cell vehicles. There is a possibility.
auto field, fuel cell
Hydrogen is an energy carrier, not a source of energy. Hydrogen fuel must be converted into electricity by a device called a fuel cell stack before it can be used to power a car or truck.
A fuel cell converts chemical energy into electrical energy using oxidizing agents through an oxidation-reduction reaction. Fuel cell based vehicles usually combine hydrogen and oxygen to generate electricity to drive an electric motor on board. Since fuel cell vehicles use electricity to power them, they are considered to be electric vehicles (EVs).
Inside each fuel cell, hydrogen is drawn from onboard pressurized tanks and made to react with a catalyst, usually made of platinum. As the hydrogen passes through the catalyst, it is stripped of its electrons, which are forced to move along an external circuit, producing an electric current. This current is used by an electric motor to propel the vehicle, with the only byproduct being water vapor.
Hydrogen fuel cell cars have almost zero carbon footprint. Hydrogen is about 2-3 times more efficient than burning petrol, as an electrochemical reaction is much more efficient than combustion. Toyota Mirai and Honda Clarity cars are powered by fuel cells.
Use cases in India
India’s electricity grid is predominantly coal-based and will continue to be so, thus negating collateral benefits from a major EV push – as coal would have to be burned to generate the electricity that powers these vehicles. In many countries that are pushing EVs, most electricity is generated from renewable energy – in Norway, for example, 99 percent is hydroelectric power.
Hydrogen vehicles could be particularly effective in long-distance trucking and other difficult-to-electrify sectors such as shipping and long-distance air travel. Using heavy batteries in these applications would be counterproductive, especially for countries like India, where the electricity grid is predominantly coal-based.
Furthermore, given that generation capacity through renewable energy sources such as solar and wind has increased over the past 10 years, this could be diverted to green hydrogen production during non-peak hours.
Apart from autos, concerted efforts are being made to take advantage of green hydrogen in sectors such as petroleum refining and steel. In April 2022, state-owned Oil India Limited to commission India’s first 99.99 percent pure green hydrogen plant JorhatAssam.
In the proposed mission, the steel sector has been made a stakeholder, and a pilot with partial funding from the government to explore the feasibility of using green hydrogen in Direct Reduced Iron (DRI) production by partially replacing natural It is proposed to set up the plant. gas with hydrogen in gas based DRI plants. Based on the success of the pilot projects, gas based DRI units are to be encouraged to adopt this process on a large scale.
Kerala has set up a high-level working group to prepare a strategic roadmap, policy formulation and implementation plans for its own hydrogen economy mission, which will facilitate investment in green hydrogen and make the state a “green hydrogen hub”. is to make.
The research and development center of Indian Oil Corporation Limited in collaboration with Tata Motor Limited had previously tested hydrogen fuel cell buses. Companies such as Reliance Industries Ltd, Adani Enterprises, JSW Energy, and Acme Solar have plans to tap the green hydrogen opportunity. Adani announced in June that it would jointly collaborate with France’s Total Energy to build the “world’s largest green hydrogen ecosystem”. US-based Ohmium International has commissioned India’s first green-hydrogen factory in Karnataka.