The National Green Hydrogen Mission (NGHM)'s ambitious targets of 5 million metric tonnes (MMT) of green hydrogen production capacity by 2030, relies on the 450 GW renewable energy target being met by 2030. Domestic electrolyzer and Balance of Plant (BoP) manufacturing will play bringing down the cost of hydrogen production. India needs to attract foreign investment in hydrogen equipment manufacturing and build greenfield plants to produce hydrogen. Attracting project developers to invest in states to build green hydrogen production plants and infrastructure will be very important.

IH2A continues to champion the development of a uniform set of Bharat H2 standards for hydrogen storage, transport, and dispensation. This focus on global harmonization and interoperability remains crucial for building a robust domestic hydrogen value chain and ensuring seamless adoption across diverse use-cases and sectors. Several pilot projects are underway to test the feasibility and safety of blending hydrogen into existing natural gas pipelines, with varying blend percentages. As India ramps up its hydrogen blending plans in existing gas pipelines, ensuring compatibility with new pipeline specifications is paramount. Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE) has taken active steps towards developing Bharat H2 standards, with the first set expected to be finalized in early 2024. This aligns with the ambitious timeline of the National Green Hydrogen Mission. IH2A is actively collaborating with international organizations and standards bodies to ensure alignment of Bharat H2 standards with global best practices. Learn More

IH2A envisions at least 5 national Hydrogen Valleys or Hubs across India to kickstart domestic hydrogen production and commercialization, to combat climate change. In 2022, IH2A proposed, 25/25 National Green Hydrogen Hub Development Plan for creation of Five National Hubs in Gujarat, Karnataka, Maharashtra, Kerala and Andhra Pradesh; clustering the 25 Green Hydrogen projects, where multi-sectoral demand for green hydrogen can be produced and used, without building expensive new infrastructure in next three years.

IH2A is working with government of Kerala to build the Kochi Green Hydrogen (KGH2) Hub. Public funding remains important for inducing early-stage green hydrogen demand and supporting first-generation projects that create public project development experience which can be applied to the next generation of scaled-up projects. To incentivize participation, IH2A calls on for special government incentives and off-take guarantees that mitigate risks and attract investments. This approach aligns with Mission Innovation, a global G2G initiative to cut down carbon emissions and combat climate change in line with India's commitments as per the Paris Agreement. This framework provides a valuable template for project funding, risk management, and collaboration between public and private stakeholders, ensuring efficient and sustainable development of the hydrogen economy. Learn More

IH2A is collaborating with the steel industry and policymakers to develop a decarbonization pathway for reducing emissions in steelmaking that involves increasing the use of hydrogen-based technologies such as direct reduced iron (DRI) and electrolysis. This pathway is expected to significantly reduce CO2 emissions from steel production, with the potential to cut up to 90%. Learn More

In India, green ammonia is poised to be a game-changer, simultaneously decarbonizing both the crucial fertilizer and refinery sectors. IH2A expects steel, refineries, and fertilizers industrial clusters to be hydrogen early adopters, as part of their decarbonisation plans, with potentially distributed models. Industrial plants and clusters with proximity to renewable energy sources can be hydrogen offtakers if supported with incentives, integrated hydrogen production facilities and locally available hydrogen infrastructure. One of the key challenge remains high upfront costs and a nascent infrastructure for production, transport, and storage. IH2A is working with industry, government, and investors to provide a strong policy support and champion technological advancements to power a cleaner future for refineries and fertilizers; and reduce carbon emissions in these hard-to-abate industries. Learn More

The transportation sector is a major contributor to global greenhouse gas (GHG) and carbon emissions, with fossil fuels dominating its energy needs currently. The quest for decarbonization has spurred significant interest in e-fuels and derivatives, offering a promising pathway towards low-carbon, cleaner, greener transportation. Hence, Hydrogen use in heavy-duty transport, to replace diesel and drive de-carbonisation, is a key stated objective of IH2A. We will work with exploring hydrogen commercialisation in trucking, trains, and shipping, in tandem with the electrification drive so that the appropriate technology choices are chosen for the appropriate vehicle options (electric for smaller, short-haul vehicles and hydrogen for long-haul, freight). This is a rapidly maturing use case with several active global players and projects. IH2A will work closely with global players and regulators to ensure that Indian players and the government have ready access to the latest global developments to reduce carbon emissions in the heavy-duty transport use cases, and able to collaborate smoothly on India projects. Learn More