What are the Challenges of Adopting Green Hydrogen Technology?

About Green Hydrogen Mission (GHM)

Aim of Green Hydrogen Mission

• The creation of export opportunities for green hydrogen and its derivatives; 
• Decarbonisation of the energy sector and use in mobility applications in a bid to lower the dependence on imported fossil fuels; 
• The development of indigenous manufacturing capacities.
• The mission seeks to promote the development of a green hydrogen production capacity of at least 5 MMT (Million Metric Tonnes) per annum with an associated renewable energy capacity addition of about 125 GW in the country by 2030.

Implementation of Green Hydrogen Mission

• The Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE) will formulate the scheme guidelines for implementation.
• An enabling policy framework will be developed to support the establishment of the green hydrogen ecosystem. 
• A robust standards and regulations framework will also be developed.
• Further, a public-private partnership framework for R&D (Strategic Hydrogen Innovation Partnership - SHIP) will be facilitated under the mission. 
• R&D projects will be goal-oriented, time-bound, and suitably scaled up to develop globally competitive technologies. 
• A coordinated skill development program will also be undertaken.

Significance of Green Hydrogen Mission

• Creation of export opportunities for green hydrogen and its derivatives.
• Decarbonization of industrial, mobility, and energy sectors.
• Reduction of over ₹1 lakh crore cost on imported fossil fuels and feedstock.
• Reduction of nearly 50 MMT of annual greenhouse gas emissions by 2030.
• Developing indigenous manufacturing capabilities; 
• Creation of over 6 lakh jobs by 2030 employment opportunities; 
• Development of cutting-edge technologies.
• Facilitation of demand creation, production, utilization, and export of green hydrogen. 
• Support to pilot projects in emerging end-use sectors and production pathways. 

Green Hydrogen Potential

Advantages

• It is a clean burning molecule that can decarbonize a range of sectors including iron and steel, chemicals, and transportation. 
• Renewable energy that cannot be stored or used by the grid can be channeled to produce hydrogen.
• Green hydrogen could eventually potentially replace fossil fuels and fossil fuel-based feedstocks in fertilizer production, petroleum refining, steel production, and transport applications.

Backdrop

• Green hydrogen is not commercially viable at present. 
• The current cost in India needs to be reduced to become cost-competitive. This is what the Hydrogen Energy Mission aims for.
• The draft Mission document is likely to propose support for the production and deployment of green hydrogen, alongside a major push for hydrogen in the auto sector, R&D for fuel cell development, and pilot projects for fuel cell vehicles.

Auto Sector, Fuel Cells

• Hydrogen is an energy carrier, not a source of energy. Thus to transform it into electricity, a device called a fuel cell stack can be used to power a car or truck.
• A fuel cell converts chemical energy into electrical energy using oxidizing agents through an oxidation-reduction reaction. 
• Fuel cell-based vehicles are considered electric vehicles (EVs), as they most commonly combine hydrogen and oxygen to produce electricity to power the electric motor on board.

Use Cases in India

• India’s electricity grid are predominantly coal-based and will continue to be so, thus negating collateral benefits from a major EV push.
• Hydrogen vehicles can be especially effective in long-haul trucking and other hard-to-electrify sectors such as shipping and long-haul air travel. 
• Using heavy batteries in these applications would be counterproductive, especially for countries such as India, where the electricity grid is predominantly coal-fired.
• The main source of energy generation in the last decade is primarily renewable energy sources such as solar and wind, this can be diverted for green hydrogen production during non-peak hours.
• US-based Ohmium International has commissioned India’s first green-hydrogen factory in Karnataka.