Addressing the inaugural session of International Conference on Green Hydrogen (ICGH-2023), Bhupinder S Bhalla, Secretary, Ministry of New & Renewable Energy said that this three-day International Conference on Green Hydrogen is the biggest event so far by Government of India on green hydrogen since the launch of the country’s National Green Hydrogen Mission.

He highlighted the need for energy transition and how green hydrogen plays a critical role in the same. “India’s economy is growing rapidly, leading to increase in demand for energy and resources. Energy use has doubled in the last 20 years and is likely to grow by at least another 25% by 2030. India currently imports over 40% of its primary energy requirements, worth over USD 90 billion every year. Major sectors like mobility and industrial production are significantly dependent on imported fossil fuels. This necessitates a shift towards technologies that enable enhanced share of renewable sources in the energy mix, to enable us to progressively reduce the reliance on fossil fuels.”

Bhalla said that under the National Green Hydrogen Mission, it has been targeted to build capabilities to produce at least 5 Million Metric Tonnes (MMT) of green hydrogen per annum by 2030. He added that the Mission will support replacement of hydrogen produced from fossil fuel sources with green hydrogen in ammonia production and petroleum refining, blending green hydrogen in City Gas Distribution systems, production of steel with green hydrogen, and use of green hydrogen-derived synthetic fuels (like Green Methanol) to replace fossil fuels in various sectors including mobility, shipping, and perhaps aviation.

The Secretary informed that the Mission will be implemented in a phased manner, focusing initially on deployment of green hydrogen in sectors that are already using hydrogen, and evolving an ecosystem for R&D, regulations and pilot projects. The latter phase of the Mission will build on these foundational activities and undertake Green Hydrogen initiatives in other sectors of the economy.

The Mission aims to develop and scale up green hydrogen production technology and make it affordable and widely accessible. With an initial budget of nearly Rs. 19,700 crore, the Mission includes stimulating demand, incentivizing supply through financial incentives, and facilitating key enablers such as research and development and common infrastructure.

The Secretary told the delegates that pilot projects in the sectors like steel, long-range heavy-duty mobility, energy storage and shipping, are proposed under the Mission. These pilot projects will help identify operational issues and gaps in terms of current technology readiness, regulations, implementation methodologies, infrastructure and supply chains, he added.

Bhalla said that the three-day International Conference on Green Hydrogen has been organized to discuss the recent advances and upcoming technologies across the entire Green Hydrogen value chain. “It is an opportunity to discuss the evolving green hydrogen landscape and network with global scientific community and industry. In this 3-day mega event, we have organised 7 Plenary Sessions providing perspective of different countries and Regions, 16 parallel technical sessions and 4 panel discussions around establishing the Green Hydrogen ecosystem and catalyzing a systemic approach for meeting the global goals for decarbonization through Green Hydrogen. We have seen a remarkable enthusiasm from stakeholders for participating in this conference and I am happy to share that we have over 2700 registered participants, from Government of India, States/UTs, Industry and Academia, including from other countries.”

The Secretary said that the government is hopeful that the conference will enable us to better plan the implementation of the National Green Hydrogen Mission.