HYDERABAD/CHENNAI: Shortly after setting emission standards for the production of green hydrogen in India a few weeks ago, the Centre indicated its intention to make the fuel mandatory for a clutch of industries. In other words, it meant business though its technology in the country is still in its nascent stage.
A quick transition to clean fuels is imperative if we are to stay within the 1.5°C cap of global warming as compared to the pre-industrial age. The country is betting on its scientists and captains of industry to take the technological leap of faith to achieve the goal early.
Green hydrogen is the production of combustible gas through various means, including electrolysis of water, using renewable energy like solar power. The source of energy for production determines whether it is green, grey, blue, brown, yellow or pink hydrogen. Green hydrogen is a product of a clean energy source. The downside of electrolysis is that it is a water guzzler.
Any plant that produces green hydrogen must have an emission threshold of 2 kg CO2 equivalent per kg of hydrogen on a 12-month average, the government had stipulated.
The new and renewable energy ministry plans to seek the Union Cabinet’s approval for a mandate to at least partially use green hydrogen for manufacture by different industry segments like petroleum, steel and fertilisers. But as Tata Steel’s global CEO & MD T V Narendran said recently, there is no silver bullet for green transition in hard-to-abate sectors, including steel. It’s a complex challenge that needs government support, he added.
The fast-tracking of green hydrogen projects comes at a time when India expects hydrogen demand to jump five-fold to 28 million tonnes by 2050. At present, its cost of production is steep. But when renewable energy costs come down by and by, that of producing green hydrogen could drop by 50 per cent.
The National Green Hydrogen Mission has an outlay of Rs 19,744 crore to make India a global hub for the production, usage and export of green hydrogen and its derivatives by 2030. Almost all institutes with research labs in the country have at least one green hydrogen project running. Some pilot projects are already producing results.
The recent G20 leaders’ declaration agreed to support the acceleration of production, utilisation and the development of transparent and resilient global markets for hydrogen produced from zero and low-emission technologies and its derivatives such as ammonia. Besides, the ambitious India-Middle East-Europe Economic Corridor envisages to transport of green hydrogen for trade as well. The government believes that embracing green hydrogen will help the nation reduce at least Rs 1 lakh crore worth of fossil fuel imports and nearly 50 million tonnes per annum of carbon dioxide emissions by 2030. India’s clean fuel quest has already drawn corporate biggies such as Reliance, Adani, Tatas, NTPC, GAIL, IOC and L&T into the green hydrogen space.
It, however, has its own sets of challenges because storage and transportation of hydrogen have traditionally been difficult due to its flammability and low density. A recent report by the International Renewable Energy Agency on ‘global hydrogen trade to meet the 1.5° Celsius climate goal’ found that countries like China and India are best suited for their production at low cost. In contrast, the potential for green hydrogen production in countries like Japan and South Korea is limited due to a lack of land. As much as 91 per cent of land in Japan and 87 per cent in South Korea can’t be used for hydrogen production.
The Levelised Cost of Hydrogen (LCOH) is the ratio between the total system cost (capital expenditure and operational cost) and the total hydrogen production. LCOH in India by 2050 was estimated around USD 0.75/KgH2 in the most optimistic scenario and around USD 1.35/ KgH2 in the pessimistic scenario. It is estimated that in the future, green hydrogen production could reach levels of almost USD 0.65/KgH2 for the best locations in the most optimistic scenario.
While India has immense potential, experts feel the economic feasibility, and stability of the technology to prevent leakage of hydrogen and its sustainability, are still areas that haven’t been either proven or established yet. According to IIT Madras Prof Sarit Kumar Das, “we need to develop devices that will use hydrogen. However, the hydrogen effort in the country is mostly in the laboratory stage. There is always a gap between the lab level and commercialisation.” From the lab it has to go to prototype, which is not happening quickly enough, he points out. “If you are thinking of putting a hydrogen engine in a car, it would need hydrogen storage, which could be dangerous. For, hydrogen with 5% oxygen forms an explosive mixture. Besides, if a hydrogen leak results in a fire, you cannot even see it because hydrogen flames are near-invisible,” says Prof Das.
Dr. Donthi Narasimha Reddy, who is a public policy expert on energy, says capturing hydrogen is not easy, as leakage has been an issue. There are many technological challenges, for which a lot of research needs to be done.
Underlining that technological capacity is needed for capturing and utilising hydrogen at various stages, he points out that its impact assessment for large-scale production hasn’t been done yet.
“If we merely change the source of fuel it won’t solve the problem. At present, we are replacing fossil fuels with electric vehicles. Though it may bring down pollution, the overall impact on the Earth’s resource consumption will remain unchanged. We need to change transportation. Changing the material causing pollution is needed,” Dr Reddy opines. Talking about the US and Europe where hydrogen-powered vehicles are still in their initial stages, he says even the US is cautious, as its economic feasibility hasn’t been established.
Prof N Raghuram, former dean of the School of Biotechnology, GGS Indraprastha University, and chair of the International Nitrogen Initiative, says the push for green hydrogen has increased the demand for ammonia, which is an intermediate source for hydrogen production. He feels biomass is the best source of green hydrogen, but processes to tap it have not been developed yet.