IH2A, Kerala Government to work on Kochi Green Hydrogen KGH2 Hub: On Nov 14, Industry body India Hydrogen Alliance (IH2A) and the Government of Kerala has announced that it is jointly evaluating a proposal for building the Kochi Green Hydrogen (KGH2) Hub, a large-scale green hydrogen hub with multiple use-cases, to the Government of Kerala. The proposal envisages potential capital expenditure of USD 575 mn, to build a 60-tonnes per day (TPD) green hydrogen plant with a 150 MW Electrolyser, Storage and Infrastructure, which could achieve giga-watt scale and build the hydrogen economy in Kerala. The plan was shared by IH2A and the Kerala Government, today after a consultation meeting between government, industry and funding agencies. Link
POLICY & MARKET DEVELOPMENTS
- India’s long-term strategy to transition to a ‘low emissions’ pathway: India on November 14, 2022 announced its long-term strategy to transition to a “low emissions” pathway at the United Nations Conference of Parties (COP), which is premised on expanding its nuclear power capacity by at least three-fold in the next decade, apart from becoming an international hub for producing green hydrogen and increasing the proportion of ethanol in petrol. Link
- India’s green hydrogen plan will need INR 30 tn funding by 2030: India is in the process of finalizing the roadmap to a “green hydrogen economy" which will require an investment of ₹30 trillion by 2030, said Vivek Kumar Dewangan, chairman and managing director, REC. The nation’s green hydrogen plans would play a serious position in reaching its aim of web zero emissions and turning into a developed nation by 2047. Link
- Trying to make Gujarat global green hydrogen hub: PM: Prime Minister Narendra Modi said his dream is to make Gujarat the world's biggest hub for production of "the fuel of the future" green hydrogen and the state's coastline will become a preferred destination for the sector which is expected to attract an investment of Rs 8 to 10 lakh crore. He also informed that Vedanta-Foxconn's mega semiconductor plant, announced in September, is coming up in the Dholera Special Investment Region in Ahmedabad district with an investment of Rs 1.5 lakh crore. Link
- India in talks to export green hydrogen: An official of foreign ministry said India is in talks with the governments of other countries to export green hydrogen made in the South Asian nation. Moreover, Prabhat Kumar, an additional secretary of the external affairs ministry said India has plenty of sunshine which makes it viable for the country to produce green hydrogen, but did not specify a time frame for its export. Link
- Tamil Nadu to attract investment in alternative fuel segment, green hydrogen projects: Minister: According to S. S. Sivasankar, TN Transport Minister, Tamil Nadu government will continue to attract investments in the alternative fuels segment and will extend support to such projects. He further added that Tamil Nadu is open to hydrogen fuel projects. The Indian government is also aiming at becoming a major producer of green hydrogen, which is currently produced in small quantities in the country. Link
- Rs 2.5L crore investment likely in green energy by 2032: Karnataka government: Additional Chief Secretary, of the Energy Department, G Kumar Naik, said the Karnataka government expects an investment of Rs 2.5 lakh crore in the renewable energy sector by 2023. He said the department plans to set up a 10,000 MW unit under a public-private partnership model to store the renewable energy produced. The government is also working on setting up a pump storage unit of 2,000 MW capacity in Sharavathi. Link
- India-Australia to share critical resources and minerals to help co-transition to net zero target: India and Australia have been diversifying their partnership to include issues of global concern and climate change takes priority in the list. Last year, the two nations jointly agreed on partnership over low emissions technology as well as a low cost solar programme. Building on these commitments, a letter of intent was also signed earlier this year to cooperate effectively on the development of new and renewable energy technology as a part of the fourth India-Australia Energy Dialogue. The recently-signed Economic Cooperation and Trade Agreement (ECTA) would further facilitate the sharing of low emissions technological resources. Australia has a vast reservoir of green hydrogen and India could tap on to the economic investments that the Australian state is willing to make on the commercial production of green hydrogen over the period. Link
- Cummins, Tata Motors tie up for hydrogen engines for CVs:S.-based Cummins has signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Tata Motors, the largest maker of commercial vehicles in India. The collaboration is to work on the design and development of low and zero-emission propulsion technology for commercial vehicles in India—including hydrogen-powered internal combustion engines, fuel cells, and battery electric vehicle systems. India will be one of the first markets to receive Cummins’ Hydrogen engines, an important technology to drive decarbonisation. Link
- India to lead the green energy export by 2050, says Adani: According to Gautam Adani, chairman of the Adani group, India will take the lead in the global energy transition and become a net exporter of green energy by 2050. He declared that the Adani group will invest more than USD 70 billion in green energy over the following ten years, creating the most comprehensive renewable energy value chain in the world. Adani asserted that there is little doubt that India's energy transition will be exceptional as it tries to meet its energy needs, predicting that by 2050, it will require 400% more energy units than it currently uses. India is currently the third-largest energy consumer in the world and ranks third in the attractiveness of renewable energy. Link
GLOBAL DEVELOPMENTS
- EBRD supports first green hydrogen facility in Egypt: The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) is supporting the decarbonisation and Paris alignment of Egypt’s economy with a US$ 80 million loan to Egypt Green to develop the country’s first green hydrogen facility. The EBRD’s financing will be used to acquire and construct a 100 MW electrolyser facility to be powered by renewable energy. When fully developed, the facility will deliver up to 15,000 tonnes of green hydrogen annually. This, in turn, will be used as an input for the production of green ammonia to be sold on the Egyptian and international markets. Link
- In Australia, firms plan ‘super hub’ to produce green hydrogen using wind and solar: Plans for an Australian “super hub” focused on the generation of wind, solar and green hydrogen are taking shape, with those involved hoping it will start producing power by 2027. Fortescue Future Industries said it was partnering with another firm called Windlab on the project, known as the North Queensland Super Hub. As per FFI, the hub “could generate more than 10GW [gigawatts] of wind and solar power and underpin the industrial-scale production of green hydrogen from purpose-built facilities within Queensland.” Link
- ReNew Power to set green hydrogen plant in Egypt with $8 bn investment: Svevind ReNew Power has signed a framework agreement with Egypt to set up a green hydrogen plant in the Suez Canal Economic Zone with an investment of USD 8 billion. This project is scheduled to be implemented in phases, the first of which is a pilot phase to produce 20,000 tonnes of green hydrogen, along with derivatives, annually. In the next phase (Phase I), the production of 2,00,000 tonnes per year of green hydrogen, along with derivatives, will be achieved thereby bringing the project's total green hydrogen production capacity to 2,20,000 tonnes per year. The pilot phase project is expected to be commissioned in 2026. Link
- Egypt’s green hydrogen plans met with keen interest by German industry: Plans by Egypt’s government and other governments in the region to make northern Africa and the Middle East (MENA) a major exporter of green hydrogen raise hopes within the German industry to find a reliable long-term replacement for fossil gas from Russia. The collapse of fossil fuel trading between Europe and Russia following the latter’s invasion of Ukraine has prompted Germany’s government and individual companies to urgently search for new sources for energy imports. The MENA-region has been a key target for these ambitions and the German government already signed several agreements with governments in the region to greatly increase energy trading in the future. Link
- Saudi Arabia is well positioned to lead the world on green hydrogen: PwC: A senior PwC official said Saudi Arabia is perfectly poised to lead the world in green hydrogen production and drive a consumption model that thrives on reusing and recycling practices. The Kingdom has already taken the first step globally, as Saudi Arabian Oil Co. and Saudi Basic Industries Corp. announced the world’s first blue ammonia shipment to Japan in 2020. Furthermore, Saudi Arabia is building a $5 billion green hydrogen project in NEOM, powered by renewable energy, to supply 650 tons of carbon-free hydrogen daily. Link
- The Hydrogen Stream: Germany to import green ammonia from Saudi Arabia from 2026: The German government has decided to collaborate with the private sector on the construction of an import terminal for green ammonia in Hamburg. From 2026, the terminal will import green ammonia from Saudi Arabia. Air Products will produce the ammonia and distribute it to end users in Germany, mostly for conversion into hydrogen. The terminal will be built at Mabanaft's existing tank terminal at the Hamburg port. Link
- Netherlands eyes green hydrogen imports from Oman: The Netherlands has expressed hope that a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on energy cooperation with the Sultanate of Oman, will facilitate, among other goals, the import of green hydrogen from Oman. Importantly, the MoU commits the two sides to cooperating across key areas of the green hydrogen value chain. It urges both sides to facilitate the efforts of companies operating in either country to “identify export and import corridors for green hydrogen, associated fuel sources and raw materials between the two countries as a gateway to Europe”. Link
- UK to back SA's green hydrogen plans with grant funding: The UK government intends to support South Africa's plans to develop a green hydrogen sector with grant-funded technical assistance. The grant funding – a figure of which has not yet been disclosed – is part of the UK's contribution to the Just Energy Transition Partnership. The partnership between the two countries involves the continuous exchange of knowledge, with the UK sharing its experiences and lessons in developing the Tees Valley Hydrogen Hub. The UK government also flagged an upcoming $5 billion investment by a UK company – Hive Energy – to build a green ammonia plant in South Africa. The plant will create local jobs while presenting an economic opportunity for the UK and other firms involved in the project. Link
- Chile inks deals with World Bank, IDB to boost green hydrogen: Chile has signed agreements with the World Bank and the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) to promote green hydrogen production in the country. Chilean Economic Development Agency (Corfo) said in a press release that the agreements were reached within the framework of the 27th Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (COP27), being held in Egypt. The deals "will provide support to develop a green hydrogen strategy." Link