INDIA'S STRATEGY TO SCALE UP GREEN HYDROGEN PRODUCTION

India's first multi-purpose green hydrogen pilot project at 1,500 MW Nathpa Jhakri Hydro Power Station (NJHPS) in Himachal's Jhakri was inaugurated on April 24 this year.

- Vaishali Basu Sharma

The project is the nation's first multi-purpose (combined heat and power) green hydrogen generation plant with the capability to cater to the high-velocity oxygen fuel (HVOF) coating facility of NJHPS to meet its combustion fuel requirements, in addition to generating electricity through its 25kW capacity fuel cell. It will produce hydrogen gas by splitting hydrogen and oxygen from water with the help of an alkaline electrolyzer of 20Nm3/hr capacity by utilising renewable energy supplied from the 1.31 MW solar power plant of Satluj Jal Vidyut Nigam (SJVN) located in Wadhal, Himachal Pradesh.

Aligned with the National Green Hydrogen Mission of the Government of India, such projects are poised to accelerate the development of green hydrogen production infrastructure in India's power sector. Union Minister Nitin Gadkari has hailed hydrogen as the future fuel, promoting green fuels in India. He envisions ethanol-based vehicles dominating the market, leading to job creation in agriculture.

Hydrogen, particularly green hydrogen, is being viewed as the next big alternate source of energy revolution. Since green hydrogen is proven to release little to no greenhouse gases, it has become highly favoured. In terms of energy requirements, India's economy is currently the third largest in the world, and it is estimated that by 2030, the nation's demand for energy is expected to increase by 35 percent.

India's National Green Hydrogen Mission, which was launched in January 2023 with an overall outlay of Rs 19,744 crores aims to develop a green hydrogen production capacity of at least 5 million tonnes per year with an associated renewable energy capacity addition of about 125 GW in the country. At present, non-fossil fuel-based capacity constitutes about 42% of India's installed energy generation. The government aims to raise the share of non-fossil fuel in India's electricity generation capacity to 50% by 2030.