Green hydrogen for India  Link

Hydrogen is a very energy intensive fuel. One tonne of hydrogen is equivalent to 2.9 tonnes of petrol/ diesel and 2.7 tonnes of natural gas/ LPG. In 2019, India consumed 5.21m barrels/day (or 288.13m MTPA) of oil, and 59.3 bcm/ pa (or 40.2m MTPA) of natural gas.

So, India requires just 114 million tonnes of hydrogen per year to replace its total consumption of petroleum and natural gas. The figure does not take account of different efficiencies of burning fuels.

Fuel                                             MJ/kg   

Hydrogen (H2)                        120 – 142

Methane (CH4)                          50 – 55

Liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) 46 – 51

Natural gas                                42 – 55

Petrol/gasoline                           44 – 46

Diesel fuel                                  42 – 46

Crude oil                                    42 – 47

Dimethyl ether                           29

Methanol (CH3OH)                    22.7

Hard black coal                          23.9 – 25

Lignite/brown coal                     10 – 17.4

Firewood (dry)                           16

 

There is a huge projected demand for green hydrogen (GH) as hydrogen can be used in everything, from transport vehicles to power grids. But to realise this potential, production costs must fall from the current high cost of $5-$6 per kg. India is proposing to reduce the cost to $1 per kg(!) by 2030, through local R&D, localised manufacture of components, low-cost finance and by conducting many pilot projects over the next 5 years. Example of R&D:

IISc develops a Innovative, Highly Efficient, Carbon-Negative method of producing GH

New research at IISc, at the Centre for Sustainable Technologies, has demonstrated that biomass can be converted very efficiently into GH. Biomass is first processed into syngas which is a hydrogen-rich fuel gas mix. This produces 60g of GH from 1 kg of biomass. In the second stage, GH yield increases to 100g of GH from 1 kg of biomass. The process can be tweaked to make methanol and ethanol from biomass.

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National Hydrogen Energy Roadmap

India currently consumes 5m MTPA of hydrogen. It comes mainly from fossil fuels through steam methane reforming route. 

Govt is targeting over 10m MTPA of GH by 2030. Govt's first step is for greening hydrogen used currently, in sectors like ammonia production and oil refining. It is also looking for quick adoption in other industries— eg steel sector, where it can completely replace imported coking coal and fertilisers, where it substitutes for natural gas or coal. Finance should be relatively easy for these industries. 

For broader adoption of green hydrogen, many production processes need to be refined & integrated, and associated infrastructure has to be evaluated and built. Eg:

1) Reduction in cost of production

2) In-country manufacture of all ecosystem components

3) Converting between gas and liquid forms for transportation and storage

4) Provision of suitable transport vehicles and railway wagons

5) Building of hydrogen pipeline infrastructure as required

6) Localised sources of water and low-cost renewable energy

7) Suitable sites where production, transport and environmental considerations are satisfied.

Indian Tech & Infra @IndianTechGuide 12 Aug 2022 

India's first indigenous Hydrogen-fuelled electric vessel to delivered by Mar-April 2023 from Cochin shipyard. Hydrogen fuel cells are efficient, zero-discharge and portable. Will have many uses.             

Government incentives and Private financing

Central govt is seeding Rs 3000cr with the intention of making India a future export hub for green hydrogen. Tax breaks and land allocation from the Centre are already underway. GH mission is excellently supported with clear incentives laid out specifically for industries that would be early adopters. Pilot projects are being funded to better understand market risks, reduce costs, improve efficiency, etc before the fully scaled up production is launched across India.

Several Indian companies are acting on plans to open GH plants and invest in R&D, which combined with government-backed policies, will help to reduce costs of GH. Eg. Ambani and Adani have committed to bring down the cost of GH to $1 per kg by 2030, and they have proposed massive investments of $75 billion and $70 billion in renewable and GH ecosytems.

Indian Tech & Infra @IndianTechGuide  14 Jun 2022

Adani & Total Energies (France) will jointly create world’s largest Green Hydrogen ecosystem. Adani New Industries Ltd to invest $50 Billion in green hydrogen over next 10 years.

                  

State govts are adding more traction with GH-friendly policies. Eg. Karnataka has recently attracted 2 mega projects. ACME Cleantech is to set up a 1.2 t /pa GH & ammonia plant along with solar power in Mangalruru, Kanataka for $6.7 billion. ReNew Power expects to invest $5 billion over 7 years in GH, Solar and Wind energy.

Invest in Karnataka @investkarnataka   6 July 2022

Karnataka adds another feather to its cap. @Petronas a leader in #renewableenergy,  signed an MoU to invest Rs 31,200 Cr to establish a Green Hydrogen & Ammonia plant and renewable power in Mangaluru.

Although viability and financing of GH projects is challenging as of now, it is hoped that investments by industry & large conglomerates, as well as incentives and tax breaks from governments, will give many important breakthroughs. When pilot projects are successful, then financing will become more readily available and India will be ideally positioned to emerge as a global leader in green hydrogen.

Infrastructure: Hydrogen pipelines

Safe transportation of hydrogen is a critical requirement under Govt's GH misssion. Process is on to certify old pipelines (eg. to carry blends of natural gas & H2) and to specify and manufacture new dedicated H2 pipelines with upgraded steels. For example, Tata steel is teaming up with Welspur Corp (leading pipeline manufacturer in India) to develop H2 pipeline capabilities that are compliant with emerging global standards.