India on track to achieve green hydrogen target by 2030: Puri

Betul: Union Minister for Petroleum and Natural Gas Hardeep Singh Puri on Wednesday said India is on track to achieve the target of producing five million metric tonnes of green hydrogen by 2030 and added that “the target may even prove to be conservative”.

Puri told reporters that the transition to green hydrogen was announced by the Prime Minister from the Red Fort.

“The transition has been split across six ministries or government departments due to demarcation of responsibilities, but the petroleum ministry had done a remarkable job, with hydrogen-powered buses, golf carts and drones being developed,” he said.

Puri said the government had launched the Production Linked Incentive

(PLI) scheme of Rs 19,700 crore, out of which funds were allocated for electrolyser manufacturers, and that “the money had been fully utilised”.

Highlighting progress on costs, he said, “The cheapest green hydrogen was earlier priced at $5.43 per kg in Australia, and through three tenders issued by the government, the cost had been brought down from $5.43 to less than $4 per kg, which at present stands between $3 and $4.”

He added, “The challenge is to bring the cost down to $2–2.5 since the government spent $150 million on imports of energy. There is public policy pressure to shift to green hydrogen because the hydrogen buses will only produce water vapour in the end and hence it is a very good journey.”

Puri said that if the cost comes below $3–4, India has the capacity, “thanks to its energy infrastructure and commitment to green hydrogen, to expand, replicate and scale this up.”