The National Hydrogen Mission announced by the Prime Minister on Sunday comes at a time when India is well on its way to meet its Paris commitments for the greater cause of climate change and global warming.
The government had first announced the National Hydrogen Mission in the Budget, in February, and had said this mission will draw up a road map for using hydrogen as an energy source.
Road Transport and Highways Minister Nitin Gadkari has also been vocal about promoting Hydrogen fuel for the auto industry and has asked the manufacturers to come up with solutions cleaner and environment-friendly vehicles.
Firms run by billionaires Mukesh Ambani and Gautam Adani to State-owned oil refiner IndianOil and electricity producer NTPC have also announced ambitious plans to embrace hydrogen as fuel as the nation transitions towards carbon-free fuel.
According to industry veterans, an accelerated uptake of green hydrogen within the country can reshape the renewable energy future of India and thereby further facilitate green growth.
“As per estimates and net-zero targets being taken by various countries for 2030 and 2050, the green hydrogen ecosystem will be a $12-13 trillion industry by 2050. It can be an excellent opportunity for India to become a significant exporter of green hydrogen, helping the world reduce carbon emissions and creating local jobs and wealth,” Manoj K Upadhyay, Founder and Chairman, ACME Group, said. ACME Group, a renewable energy company, has recently commissioned the world’s first integrated commercial-scale pilot plant for green hydrogen production in Rajasthan and the plant will help in saving around 4,400 tonnes of CO2 emissions every year.
Siddharth Rastogi, Executive Director, MVS Engineering, said, “With ever-rising concerns on climate change and global warming, this is a great initiative taken by the government.”
“ Conventional power is predictable and manageable, but renewable power cannot be predicted well. Green power producers are facing the threat of penalties if they put excess power on the grid and are being forced to look at alternative uses for the excess power,” he said.
To address such new challenges, advent of green hydrogen making an appearance as an alternative energy ecosystem worldwide can’t be overlooked, he added.