Policy Update
Sovik Mukherjee
Hydrogen can be produced using biomass, fossil fuels, and a mix of renewable energy sources and water. At the moment, coal and natural gas are used to manufacture the majority of the hydrogen used worldwide. In view of India reaching the target of net zero emissions by 2070, this article reflects upon our position in the context of harnessing the power of green hydrogen for a sustainable future.
Background
According to the Renewables Capacity Statistics 2023, India ranks fourth in the world for installed capacity of renewable energy (including large hydro), fourth in wind power, and fifth in solar power. India’s installed capacity for non-fossil fuels has increased to about 400% in the last nine years, and the country set a goal at COP26 to reach 500 GW of non-fossil fuel-based energy capacity by 2030. With India’s electricity demand growth of 8.4% being the highest across the globe at present, this is the largest plan for renewable energy expansion in the world and has been a major pledge under the Panchamrit.
On account of being a clean energy carrier, green hydrogen is becoming more and more popular as an alternative energy source. India is in a unique position to use hydrogen power — in particular, green hydrogen being generated from renewable energy, solar, wind, biomass — to achieve its energy and environmental goals because of its enormous solar potential and rising energy needs. Hydrogen has a significant role in the global market for decarbonizing industries like power generation, transportation (pilot projects on hydrogen buses and cars), aviation, shipping, steel industry, fertilizers, among others. India is not an exception. To achieve a net-zero target by 2050 globally, the usage of green hydrogen has to double (Nnabuife et al., 2023).
Global context: Big investments in green energy hydrogen
Six countries have the capacity to emerge as the world’s main providers of green hydrogen, according to the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA) Report: the United States, South Korea, Japan, India, China, and the European Union.
Significant technological investments are being made by Saudi Arabia, Japan, Australia, Chile, and the EU, which plans to invest US$430 billion in green hydrogen by 2030. By the end of 2025, Portugal hopes to be producing green hydrogen, and €10 billion has been set aside for eight projects. Sweden, UK and Germany are also not too far behind in providing generous subsidies for green hydrogen production. Saudi Arabia is coming up with the largest green hydrogen project in the world which will have the capacity to produce 600 tonnes of green hydrogen per/day from 4 GW of solar and wind energy. India is not too far behind.
The National Green Hydrogen Mission of India seeks to establish the nation as a major hub for the production, export, and use of natural resources (Kar et al., 2023). The mission outcomes include 8 lakh crore investment in capacity building, 5 million metric tons of green hydrogen produced annually will not only reduce the reliance on fossil fuels but also abate roughly annual greenhouse gas emissions amounting to 50 MMT and generate over 6,00,000 employments.
The India Story : Opportunities and Challenges
India’s climate policy depends on green hydrogen, which provides an affordable way of meeting more than 5% of the country’s energy usage. This can result in a cumulative reduction of 80Gt of CO2 and match the 1.5°C climatic scenario. 75% of India’s energy demands are currently met by coal and oil, a percentage that is predicted to increase. Given India’s solar potential and lessen its reliance on fossil fuels, it is imperative to integrate renewable energy with green hydrogen, particularly now that the cost of solar energy has come down to US$2 per kWh.
India’s “One Nation – One Grid – One Frequency,” is one of the biggest synchronous grids in the world, a key factor in ensuring grid stability which is key to the production of green hydrogen.
Government of India has waived off the Inter State Transmission Charges and states like Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, Odisha, and West Bengal have brought in additional policies to support the National Green Hydrogen Mission. Very recently, World Bank has approved an additional US$1.5 billion to help India achieve her net-zero target with a focus on boosting the development of the renewable energy sector, especially, green hydrogen.
Despite such opportunities, there are some obstacles, preventing hydrogen power from being widely used in India. Green hydrogen requires special infrastructure for storage and transportation because of its inflammable nature. Encouraging hydrogen to be integrated into the current natural gas grid may necessitate building costly pipeline infrastructure on a massive scale.
Though under “Make in India” electrolysers have started their journey, the full scale is yet to be made operational and imports continue putting pressure on India’s current account. It is not only the high initial cost of such equipment being an area of concern but also a mammoth increase in the capacity of electrolysers will be required if India has to meet the 500 GW of renewable energy target by 2030. Since the generation of hydrogen requires a lot of water, things could get worse given that many Indian districts already experience acute water shortages. It is significant to remember that financial incentives and government support are key factors in encouraging investment in the hydrogen economy.
The National Green Hydrogen Mission is definitely a step in the right direction. Projects by NTPC, NHPC, IOCL, GAIL, THDC, Indian Railways, etc., are coming up a result of the mission and more will come up in the future with India having a large pool of skilled personnel who can execute green hydrogen projects on a large scale.
Conclusion
India can economically manufacture green hydrogen due to its extensive coastline and solar radiation (Song et al., 2022), and it may even develop into a hub for the export of hydrogen to her neighbours. By creating regional hydrogen corridors (Sontakke & Jaju, 2021), we can become a leader in the developing green hydrogen economy backed by collaborations with Japan, Europe, and Australia. Amid addressing the challenges and continuous R&D, green hydrogen can surely unlock new frontiers in India’s search for a green future.
References
- Kar, S. K., Sinha, A. S. K., Harichandan, S., Bansal, R., & Balathanigaimani, M. S. (2023). Hydrogen economy in India: A status review. Wiley Interdisciplinary Reviews: Energy and Environment, 12(1), e459.
- Nnabuife, S. G., Oko, E., Kuang, B., Bello, A., Onwualu, A. P., Oyagha, S., & Whidborne, J. (2023). The prospects of hydrogen in achieving net zero emissions by 2050: A critical review. Sustainable Chemistry for Climate Action, 2, 100024.
- Song, S., Lin, H., Sherman, P., Yang, X., Chen, S., Lu, X., … & McElroy, M. B. (2022). Deep decarbonization of the Indian economy: 2050 prospects for wind, solar, and green hydrogen. Iscience, 25(6), 104399-104399.
- Sontakke, U., & Jaju, S. (2021, November). Green hydrogen economy and opportunities for India. In IOP Conference Series: Materials Science and Engineering (Vol. 1206, No. 1, p. 012005). IOP Publishing.
- Waseem, M., Amir, M., Lakshmi, G. S., Harivardhagini, S., & Ahmad, M. (2023). Fuel cell-based hybrid electric vehicles: An integrated review of current status, key challenges, recommended policies, and future prospects. Green Energy and Intelligent Transportation, 100121.
About the Contributor:
Sovik Mukherjee is an Assistant Professor in Economics Faculty of Commerce and Management at St. Xavier’s University, Kolkata (INDIA).
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