India aims to capture 10% of green hydrogen exports

The government has put a number to its aim of being a leading exporter of green hydrogen in the world. Setting an ambitious target of capturing about 10 percent of the global green hydrogen market which is expected to touch 100 million metric tonne (MMT) by 2030.

On January 13, the government released a blueprint for its ambitious National Green Hydrogen Mission (NGHM) with a total initial outlay of Rs 19,744 crore, of which Rs 17,490 crore will be for the production-linked incentives for producing green hydrogen and manufacturing electrolysers. The NGHM document too talks about India exporting green hydrogen at length.

India is eyeing the European Union (EU), which has set a target of importing 10 MMTPA of green hydrogen by 2030.

Not just the EU, the country is also looking at exporting green hydrogen to Japan, which plans to import 5-10 MMT of green hydrogen by 2050. Similarly, South Korea also plans to import nearly 2 MMT.

To lay the ground for creating an export infrastructure, the government has committed that green ammonia bunker (marine fuel) and refuelling facilities will be present in at least one port by 2025 and that such facilities will be established at all major ports by 2035.

Besides, oil and gas PSUs will be required to charter at least one ship each to be powered by green hydrogen or derived fuels by 2027. Thereafter, the companies will be required to add at least one ship powered by such fuel for each year of the mission. These PSUs currently charter about 40 vessels for the transport of petroleum products, as per the mission.

But, experts say it is going to take at least 5-7 years for India to actually start exporting green hydrogen on the scale the government is envisaging.