BRICS member nations collectively supply around 40% energy to the world and whatever we are going to do in this space, it will have a lasting impact on the world, stated Alok Kumar, Secretary, Ministry of Power, Government of India as he spoke on the first day of the BRICS E-conference titled "Green Hydrogen Initiatives held by NTPC Limited.

Kumar believes that the current decade is going to be a decisive one for energy transition. He explains: “Going forward, we need to invest into promising and commercially viable technologies that can be implemented in the next decade. There are three technologies on the horizon that are still not commercially viable. Hydrogen is one of them which is most promising, while another is carbon capture and utilization and third is battery storage. If you grade them in the phases of development, battery storage one is more mature and we will start implementing it by 2027-28 in large scale in India. Hydrogen in my assessment will mature immediately after battery storage. We have been using it in different forms for so many years and it has an already established ecosystem. While it is being used in the production of fertilizers and in refineries, the only thing remaining is to convert hydrogen into green hydrogen.”

Talking about the linkage between battery and hydrogen, Kumar opines: “Out of the three options, battery storage will remain critical for the power sector even if in development of hydrogen. Because scientists and technologists tell us that there are issues in the conversion of hydrogen into green hydrogen and then electricity there are issues of efficiency. So battery storage will remain an important part of transmission in the power sector. I believe even beyond this sector, it will grow even further. Battery storage has some limitations in terms of manufacturing capacity, availability of minerals but its scope is huge as it can balance the grid. We can set up battery storage without a big ecosystem that is required for hydrogen like high pressure storage or transportation. Battery is going to stay with us and we have to have a good blend of battery and hydrogen.”

On the broader uses of hydrogen, Kumar adds: “Hydrogen is very critical because it is very important for sectors like steel and cement which have high heat applications. So maybe in the times to come when we turn hydrogen into green hydrogen, there will be usage beyond fertilizers and many other industries. Hydrogen will overcome the intermittency of nonrenewable and renewable energy. I am also told that hydrogen is very important for long haul transport because there are issues with battery storage for truck transportation due to size limitations. Going forward, hydrogen can have decentralized applications for remote villages and de-centralized micro grids. The successful development of fuel cells or small sized production units for hydrogen could result in massive decentralized applications. Therefore, we have a spectrum of technologies for the future."

Sharing the future roadmap, Kumar says: “India has taken a major step towards hydrogen fuels by launching the National Hydrogen Mission. It has two components: One is market making and for that we already have a stakeholder consultation that India proposes to introduce green hydrogen purchase obligations for fertilizers and refineries beginning right next year and increasing it continuously upto 2030. Therefore, we will have enough demand for green hydrogen and the market will help in pushing this demand. Second component is involvement of the private sector in a transparent and competitive manner to produce green hydrogen. Our goals are supported by scientific institutions who are all working to develop a complete hydrogen value chain, from storage, transport and the components of electrolyzers and host of other issues."

"There is a shining example of solar power where a drastic cost reduction has been achieved. It used to be Rs. 15 per unit in 2008-10 and is now available at Rs. 2 per unit minus taxes. If market development, government focused programs can bring this cost down in 10 years, we can make it possible in this case too. The policy, incentives and collective work among BRICS countries will help in making hydrogen a possibility before 2030. It is an important mission for the whole globe,” added Kumar.

Speaking at the same forum, Gurdeep Singh, Chairman and Managing Director, NTPC said, "Hydrogen as the next big carrier of energy. While pointing towards its enormous availability and zero environmental damage. The transition to the hydrogen economy will not only reduce India’s dependence on oil but will also reduce the import bills. It will help cut down on carbon fuels and build self reliance on own sources of energy. National Hydrogen Mission has laid the roadmap to achieve it and NTPC is the key driver to move towards a hydrogen economy by pioneering green hydrogen initiatives in India. We are also experimenting in carbon capturing and pilot projects in green hydrogen. We are looking at collective efforts in terms of innovative ideas and technologies so as to provide affordable energy to the masses.”