Andalib Akhter / New Delhi
Union Minister for Power Minister R K Singh has said that India is one of the lowest carbon emitters in the world and it has emerged as a world leader in energy transition. He was speaking that the first international conference on Green Hydrogen in New Delhi today.
Mr. Singh said that the country had aimed at reducing the emissions intensity of its GDP by 30 percent by 2030, which has been achieved nine years in advance. He said, the government is running programmes including the Ujala scheme related to LED bulbs which are the world’s leading initiatives in carbon emission reduction. Mr. Singh said, India has also achieved its COP21 pledge related to the Nationally Determined Contribution nine years in advance.
Stressing upon India’s achievements in the renewable energy sector, the Minister urged industry from across the world to be part of India’s National Green Hydrogen Mission. He added that India is the biggest market outside China in the renewable energy space.
Talking about creating a global market for green hydrogen, the Minister said, the world should practice free trade and not indulge in protectionist measures. He added that barriers are not good if one wants to achieve a global Net Zero in time. The three-day conference is aimed at brainstorming and working out a mechanism to establish a Green Hydrogen ecosystem and foster a systemic approach for meeting the global goals for decarbonization through Green Hydrogen.
The three-day International Conference on Green Hydrogen (ICGH-2023), being organized during 5th – 7th July 2023 at Vigyan Bhawan, New Delhi by the Government of India. The conference brings together global scientific, policy, academic and industrial leaders to discuss recent advances and emerging technologies in the entire green hydrogen value chain. The conference will enable the sector stakeholders to explore the evolving green hydrogen landscape and innovation-driven solutions in the sector, thus strengthening the sustainability ecosystem of the sector.
Inter-ministerial R&D Roadmap for Green Hydrogen Ecosystem Ready: Principal Scientific Advisor to Govt. of India
Principal Scientific Advisor to the Government of India, Prof. Ajay Kumar Sood said that successful deployment of green hydrogen requires an integrated approach, necessitating collaboration across borders, sectors and stakeholders. “All of us need to develop comprehensive regulatory frameworks, financial mechanisms and supportive policies, incentivizing investment and a level playing field for green hydrogen technologies.”
He informed that an advisory committee set up under National Green Hydrogen Mission has prepared a draft report on the R&D required to support a green hydrogen ecosystem in India. The report can be accessed here and is now open for public and stakeholder comments.
Strategic Hydrogen Innovation Partnership on PPP Model to steer Applied and Breakthrough Research in Green Hydrogen Technologies
Presenting key findings of the draft report, the Principal Scientific Advisor said that the target set under National Hydrogen Mission, of producing at least 5 Million Metric Tonnes (MMT) of Green Hydrogen per annum by 2030, will require 60 GW – 100 GW electrolyser capacity and 125 GW renewable energy capacity. He informed that this will avert carbon dioxide emissions by 50 MMT per annum, create around 600,000 jobs and bring in 100 billion dollars of investment.
Prof. Sood said that the technology challenges identified in the draft report involve enhancement of efficiency, improving cost effectiveness, achieving scale, ensuring safety of green hydrogen technologies and integrating storage, transport and grid infrastructure. The R&D framework under the National Green Hydrogen Mission envisages a Strategic Hydrogen Innovation Partnership (SHIP), which would be a Public Private Partnership framework with dedicated R&D funds with inputs from industry and government. The plan would involve building strategic international partnerships and long-shot research in breakthrough areas as well. Efforts will be made to spur innovation to enhance affordability, efficiency, safety and reliability of systems. Prof. Sood underlined the need for encouraging innovative MSMEs and startups, Centres of Excellence and broad-based solutions for addressing various research areas.
Grand Challenge Projects, Mission Mode Projects and Blue Sky Projects
The Principal Scientific Adviser to the Government of India said that the draft roadmap envisages classification of projects into grand challenge projects, mission mode projects and blue sky projects. These three types of projects have been identified across three verticals, namely hydrogen production; storage and transportation; and end use applications. He said that after obtaining public comments and adoption of final R&D roadmap by the government, R&D project proposals will be called for and projects will be awarded based on the same. The Principal Scientific Adviser expressed that these efforts will help us make India a strong hydrogen economy in the coming years.
The presentation given by the Principal Scientific Advisor can be found here.
“Can you get Green Hydrogen from Waste Water?
Director General, Council of Scientific and Industrial Research and Secretary, Department of Scientific & Industrial Research, Government of India, Dr. N. Kalaiselvi shared with the delegates that the most thought-provoking question facing us today is how and why we should handle hydrogen today. She said that climate change is a global problem, for which we need to address and leverage the potential of green hydrogen. She revealed how the seed for the International Conference on Green Hydrogen was sown by the Prime Minister of India. She said that while she was making a presentation to the Prime Minister, who is also the President of CSIR, the PM asked the DG: can you get green hydrogen from waste water? “The Prime Minister said that this is a question not only to CSIR, but also to the entire Indian community. So, you can have a conference with international participation where you can have a detailed discussion, to explore how hydrogen could be utilized as a solution to mitigate the problem of climate change.”