Hydrogen is the most abundant gas in our universe. Around 75 percent of all mass in the universe is made up of hydrogen and 90% of all atoms in the universe are hydrogen atoms. Despite its abundance, exploring its vast potential has remained elusive for mankind, at least until recently. Ever since its discovery, scientists have been experimenting to unlock the potentiality of Hydrogen. We didn’t have any idea about the potentiality of Hydrogen until we experimented with Hydrogen fuel cells for the Apollo missions. Hydrogen can contribute to global decarbonization and mitigating the climate crisis. According to a McKinsey analysis, hydrogen could contribute to more than 20% of annual global emissions reductions by 2050. As of May 2023, more than 1,000 large-scale hydrogen projects have already been announced which is a very good sign. India’s current hydrogen demand is around 6 million tonnes per annum, which is expected to reach 12 million tonnes by 2030. The GOI has presented its roadmap and vision for the National Green Hydrogen Mission. Under this mission, the government is planning to achieve 5 million metric tonnes (MMT) of green hydrogen production by 2030 with over INR 8 lakh crore of investments, resulting in the creation of over 6 lakh jobs that will be a significant step for India to reduce the unemployment rate. The policy is a welcome step. The development of a green hydrogen economy will be a key component of India’s ambitious economic and environmental agenda at the global level.
India currently imports 40% of its energy requirements, at a cost of around $90 billion per year. The key to harnessing green hydrogen lies in the electrolysers used to generate Hydrogen. Worldwide electrolyser sales have doubled from 200 megawatts (MW) in 2020 to 458 in 2021. As this trend is expected to continue shortly, it’s a golden opportunity for India to capture this vast market aggressively. One needs about 10 litres of fresh water and 50 kWh of electricity to generate 1 kg of hydrogen. The cost of production of green Hydrogen ranges from $4.10 to $7 per kg. At this rate, we would need to ensure a steady supply of 50 billion Liters of freshwater to achieve 3 million tonnes of green hydrogen production as stated in the National Green Hydrogen Mission policy document. This poses a major ecological and social challenge, the falling groundwater levels already causing water stress across the country so, we need to promote research to build sustainable technology that will be an alternative to freshwater in the electrolysis process. Utilizing grey and wastewater to channel this will further boost our circular economy aspirations. The government of India has already taken several steps to promote the uptake of green energy. Going by the current market trends, green hydrogen has created a brilliant idea for a massive “Brahmastra” against climate change. Countries that can produce green hydrogen to meet domestic consumption and export surplus have the potential to dominate the market in the future.
