India Hydrogen Alliance (IH2A) to soon announce new members as well as partner organizations that have joined the alliance to continue the work towards developing the hydrogen economy and a domestic hydrogen supply chain in India.
POLICY & MARKET DEVELOPMENTS
• National Hydrogen Mission’s likely to be announced by December: MNRE officials: The union government is likely to release the second part of the green hydrogen policy in December this year. The second part of the policy is likely to mandate energy-guzzling industries– like refineries, fertiliser, among others–to use green hydrogen and green ammonia in a phased manner and also offer production-linked incentives. Link
• Centre to come up with PLI for green hydrogen: Union minister for new and renewable energy RK Singh said that the union government will come up with a production linked incentive (PLI) scheme for green hydrogen. The minister said that the incentive would be required only for the initial green hydrogen projects in the country. The minister also stressed on the need to generate “green" Hydrogen instead of “decarbonised" hydrogen, which he said some developed countries have proposed decarbonised hydrogen which may involve methane and carbon dioxide emissions. Link
• Jakson Green, Rajasthan govt sign MoU for $2.8B GH2 and green ammonia plant: Jakson Green, the energy transition platform of Jakson Group, will set up a 3,65,000 tonnes per annum green hydrogen and green ammonia plant along with an integrated hybrid renewable power complex in the state’s Kota district. Rajasthan has bagged its second major green hydrogen and green ammonia project with the signing of an MoU between the Noida-headquartered Jakson Group and the state government. Jakson Green, the new energy transition platform backed by Jakson Group has committed to rolling out the Rs 22,400 crore or $2.8 billion project in the state, in a phased manner. Link
• India’s Adani Group Plans to Export Green Hydrogen to Europe from Morocco: Indian businessman Gautam Adani is currently holding exploratory talks with Moroccan authorities to develop solar and wind projects, aiming to contribute to Europe’s supply of electricity and green hydrogen. The company plans to produce green hydrogen with the support of locally generated solar and wind power. Forecasts estimate that the generated power capacity would equal Morocco’s existing installed energy generation capacity. The project would be developed in two stages with five gigawatts each, and the generated power is expected to meet local and European demand for power and green hydrogen. Link
• India to export green energy to Singapore from 2025, Greenko-Keppel sign Hydrogen MoU: India will for the first-time export green energy from 2025, with the first shipments going to a Singapore power plant under an MoU signed by an India-based dispatchable renewables company and Singapore's energy. The MoU to explore opportunities in green hydrogen potential in India will see Greenko group and Singapore's Keppel Infrastructure working towards a 250,000 tonne per annum contract to be supplied to Keppel's new 600Mw power plant in Singapore. Further, the contract for the export of green ammonia would also expand to cover bunker fuel through the Keppel network in Singapore's network of bunker fuel supplies to ships. Link
• Govt scales up tests on blending hydrogen with natural gas for power generation: State-run NTPC Ltd, India’s largest power-generating utility, signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Siemens Ltd on October 12 to test the feasibility of hydrogen co-firing blended with natural gas at its 432 MW power plant in Haryana’s Faridabad. This is the second MoU signed by NTPC in less than a week for testing such a process and technology, which is aimed at decarbonising power generation in India. Experts said these pilot projects, if scaled up further, could act as a “good transitory phase” as the country gradually warms up toward the national green hydrogen mission. Link
• 'Rajasthan to be first state to implement green hydrogen policy', says minister Shakuntala Rawat: Rajasthan Industries Minister Shakuntala Rawat said that the state would be the first in the country to implement a green hydrogen policy. Rawat also said that appropriate action would be taken on the suggestions and feedback received from the entrepreneurs on the policies of the government, adding that the state government will take the entrepreneurs along. Anurag Jain, Secretary, Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT), Government of India, said that it is a commendable achievement to have MoUs worth Rs 10 lakh crore in Rajasthan. He also called upon the investors to invest in Rajasthan. Link
• EVs, green hydrogen to soon come under priority sector lending: Report: Loans for electric vehicles and green hydrogen may soon be categorised under priority sector lending (PSL) by banks. Several banks have suggested the move to the Reserve Bank of India (RBI). Banks reportedly told the RBI that categorising such loans as a priority will help fill the "financing gaps" in these sectors. Also, it will help banks to meet their PSL targets. The Indian Banks' Association (IBA) in September, had set up a committee to look into "sustainable financing" with Environmental, Societal and Governance (ESG) issues in focus. Link
• LNG Alliance sets up green hydrogen technology hub in India: An affiliate of LNG Alliance Pte Ltd., Singapore (LNG Alliance), Carbon Governance, is strengthening India’s status as a global leader in renewables by establishing a new energies business unit in Chennai, Tamil Nadu. The new unit, Linga New Energies Pvt Ltd, will build upon the region’s existing solar power and wind farm infrastructure to drive green hydrogen production and new energies project developments. Already accounting for a quarter of India’s installed wind generating capacity, Tamil Nadu is planning to install an additional 20,000MW (megawatt) solar capacity by 2030. Link
• India's airports adopting green energy fast: India is going big on its commitment regarding net zero emission and switching as fast as possible into green energy in every sphere of business. In tune with this mission, several Indian airports are switching to green energy and the Centre has kept a target of turning 90 airports into carbon neutral by 2024. In June this year, the international airport in New Delhi adopted green energy, using only hydro and solar power for all its energy needs. Link
• France and India adopt joint roadmap on green hydrogen: Chrysoula Zacharopoulou, France’s Minister of State for Development, Francophonie and International Partnerships and Union Power and New & Renewable Energy Minister R K Singh on Tuesday adopted the “Indo-French Roadmap on the Development of Green Hydrogen". It aims to bring the French and Indian hydrogen ecosystems together in order to establish a reliable and sustainable value chain for decarbonised hydrogen and achieve our common goal to be world leaders in decarbonised hydrogen Link
GLOBAL DEVELOPMENTS
• Germany hails 1st delivery of 'green' hydrogen from UAE: Germany took formal delivery of its first, modest, batch of hydrogen from the United Arab Emirates, a "green" fuel it hopes will help replace coal and gas used by energy-intensive industries in future. Germany is scrambling to substitute natural gas imports from Russia while also staying on track for its ambitious goal of cutting greenhouse gas emissions to “net zero” by 2025. The delivery in Hamburg was a single container with 13 metric tons of ammonia. Link
• UNECE to create an international hydrogen classification system: The United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE) Committee on Sustainable Energy discussed the proposal for a comprehensive and science-backed terminology classification and taxonomy for hydrogen using various production pathways. It would establish a task force or working group to urgently prepare details for the UN Framework Classification for Resources (UNFC) application and ensure stakeholder coordination. Under the UNFC application, it must consider emissions and other economic and social concerns, ensuring a country’s environmental-social-economic viability. Link
• Kazakhstan and EU to Build Hub for Green Hydrogen Production and Distribution: Svevind Energy Group CEO Wolfgang Kropp and First Deputy Prime Minister of Kazakhstan Roman Sklyar signed an investment agreement to construct a green hydrogen production and distribution hub in the Mangystau Region. Hyrasia One, Svevind Group’s subsidiary, plans to produce two million tons of green hydrogen annually. The project involves building and operating a desalination plant with 255,000 cubic meters per day, a 40 GW renewable energy station (wind, solar), and a 20 GW water electrolysis production, mainly for export or domestic consumption. Link
• Port of Rotterdam and Cespa Sign MoU for a Green Hydrogen Corridor: The The Port of Rotterdam and Spanish oil group Cespa have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to establish the first green hydrogen corridor between Southern and Northern Europe. The trade lane is expected to be operational by 2027, exporting Hydrogen from Spain to the Port of Rotterdam in the Netherlands. The corridor will ensure a steady supply of hydrogen between two of Europe’s important ports, Rotterdam and Algeciras. The port stated that it could supply Northwestern Europe with 4.6 million tonnes of hydrogen annually by 2030. This will lead to a CO2 reduction of 46 million tonnes per year. Link
• WA government accelerates green hydrogen plans near Geraldton as global players dig in: After receiving significant interest from major global producers, the development of a hydrogen hub north of Geraldton is being fast tracked by the West Australian government. WA Hydrogen Minister Alannah MacTiernan said the government would tip $5.5 million into feasibility and planning works for the Oakajee Strategic Industrial Area (SIA). This included spending $500,000 on a joint study with the Netherlands' Port of Rotterdam — which is working to become Europe's hydrogen hub — into exporting hydrogen products. Link
• European Union to Invest $5.2 Billion More for Green Hydrogen Projects: To provide a major thrust to hydrogen development in the region, the European Commission (EC) has approved $5.2 billion in public funding. The EU said that the new investments will also be attracting about $6.8 billion in private funding for the hydrogen industry. The EU held that 13 countries will be giving funds for a project called ‘IPCEI Hy2Use,’ that is being created for the support of 29 businesses in 35 projects. The objective of IPCEI Hy2Use is to develop large-scale electrolysers and transport infrastructure, for the production, storage and transport of renewable and low-carbon hydrogen. The EU said that investments will go into all types of hydrogen – grey, brown and green – but it will focus more on the green hydrogen that is produced employing renewable sources of energy. Link
• Oman to offer 47-year land concessions for green hydrogen projects: Developers of green hydrogen projects in the Sultanate of Oman will be eligible for land concessions spanning 47 years, among other incentives. Land allocations, covering blocks of around 320 sq kilometres apiece, will be based on a competitive bidding system. The officials pointed out that the Omani government, for its part, will be entitled to receive base royalties (starting from 5 per cent in kind) and surplus royalties. In addition, a 20 per cent stake in the project must be offered to a government-owned entity – presently OQ, the state-owned integrated global energy group. Furthermore, project developers have to bear applicable corporate taxes Link
• Christchurch, Hamburg airports join forces on green hydrogen: Christchurch and Hamburg airports have signed a partnership to work on infrastructure for the use of green hydrogen in aviation. The two airport leaders say they are located on opposite sides of the world, but united in environmental protection. This is for both H2-powered vehicles on the ground and hydrogen-based aircraft propulsion systems to enable a sustainable future for aviation. The two airports also see potential in company owned energy parks. Link
• Australian and Japanese companies sign hydrogen Statement of Cooperation: Japan’s Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, Kawasaki Heavy Industries, Marubeni, and Australia’s Santos and H2U have signed individual Statements of Cooperation with the State Government to accelerate the development of the hydrogen economy in South Australia. This is a major step as Australia is expected to become the region’s (Asia-Pacific) production hub. Additionally, this move will only help to fast-track the global transition to clean energy. Link
• Sasol and ArcelorMittal plan to explore renewable hydrogen projects: The South African petrochemicals company Sasol has partnered with steelmaker ArcelorMittal to explore steel production using renewable hydrogen and carbon capture technology. Currently, Sasol is the world’s biggest producer of fuel products, so this pivot to hydrogen and similar technologies is part of the company’s decarbonization plans. Additionally, both companies will be studying the Saldanha region’s potential as an export hub for renewable hydrogen, derivatives, and renewable steel production. Link
• UK largest hydrogen trade association launched ‘Hydrogen Accelerators’: At the Conservative Party Conference on October 4, Hydrogen UK (HUK), UK’s largest hydrogen trade organization, unveiled its "Hydrogen Accelerators," which will serve as a roadmap to the hydrogen supply chain development of the region. The Hydrogen Accelerators are a set of recommendations given by 50 strong industry members to examine industrial bottlenecks and determine the next steps of the hydrogen industry. HUK advocates rapid production scale-up, increased support on infrastructure, distribution, and storage, and creation of end-use market demand. Link