NEW DELHI: The Union Cabinet on Wednesday approved the National Hydrogen mission with a total allocation of Rs 19,744 crore for producing 5 million tonnes of green hydrogen by 2030. Out of the total allocation, Rs 17,490 crore has been earmarked as incentive for the production of electrolysers and green hydrogen.
“India will be the global hub for green hydrogen in the future…two types of incentives will be given to boost the manufacturing of low-cost equipment and technologies. Incentives will be given on electrolyser manufacturing for five years for the production of green hydrogen. In addition, green hydrogen hubs will also be developed,” Anurag Thakur, information and broadcasting minister said in a media briefing.
By 2030, the project expects to bring in over Rs 8 lakh crore investment and create over 6 lakh jobs. Besides, nearly 50 MMT per annum of CO2 emissions are expected to be averted by that year. The mission will support pilot projects in emerging end-use sectors and production pathways. Regions capable of supporting large-scale production and utilisation of hydrogen will be identified and developed as green hydrogen hubs.
The Ministry of New and Renewable Energy will formulate the scheme guidelines for implementation.
Rajat Seksaria, CEO, ACME Group, a cleantech solution provider, said the incentive programme would make the green molecule from India competitive.
“This is required for the initial few projects and creating green hydrogen hubs, which will allow supply chains to be established and scale of production to increase. Several nations have already come up with green hydrogen subsidy and support programmes,” he said.
However, Ramanuj Kumar, partner at Cyril Amarchand Mangaldas, while welcoming the incentive, was unsure if it would be adequate for boosting green hydrogen production. In February last, the government notified the green hydrogen policy, which paved the way for faster approval for green hydrogen projects, waiver for inter-state transmission fee for 25 years and easier access to renewable energy for production of green hydrogen. India has set a target of 5 million tonnes of green hydrogen, and 175 giga watts of green hydrogen-based energy capacity by 2030.
Niti Aayog sees 4-fold growth According to a Niti Aayog report, green hydrogen demand in India could grow more than four-fold by 2050 and its market in India could reach US$8 billion by 2030