India’s Green Hydrogen Aspirations | Sachin Chugh, ARUP

As hydrogen emerges as a critical decarbonisation solution across various sectors, India aspires to produce 5 million metric tons of green hydrogen annually by 2030. This interaction with Sachin Chugh, Hydrogen lead for India at ARUP UK, aims to provide an overview and his expert insights into the current state of hydrogen infrastructure in India, as well as the opportunities and challenges that lie ahead.

The Current Demand for Hydrogen in India

“While earlier waves of hydrogen lacked technological depth and a wide range of uses, today’s hydrogen wave shows promise in decarbonizing challenging sectors such as refineries, steel production, and fertilizer manufacturing.”

Two sectors prominently emerge if we look at the sectoral breakdown of hydrogen demand:

• Utilities, where hydrogen plays a crucial role in desulfurising petroleum products to meet strict Bharat Stage norms, primarily through hydroprocessing and hydrotreating in oil refineries. These sectors heavily rely on hydrogen.

• The fertiliser sector contributes substantially to hydrogen demand.

Combined with steel, chemicals, food and beverages, vegetable oils, and the glass industry, India’s total annual demand for hydrogen reaches approximately 6 to 7 million metric tons. A part of this demand is generated in situ at refineries.

Hydrogen is produced from fossil fuels, mainly natural gas, supplemented by a small portion of naphtha. The production process, particularly steam methane reforming from natural gas, emits about 10 to 12 kg of carbon dioxide per kg of hydrogen produced. Unless this CO2 is captured, the impact of hydrogen production on the environment is tremendous.

Globally, efforts are underway to transition to green hydrogen production by reducing reliance on fossil fuels or capturing and utilising carbon dioxide emissions. Countries like China heavily rely on coal gasification, prompting the need for carbon dioxide capture and utilization strategies to address environmental concerns.

Producing Green Hydrogen

Green hydrogen is produced by splitting water molecules into hydrogen and oxygen using renewable energy from solar, wind, or hybrid models. It is termed “green” as it has no carbon footprint.

Multiple electrolysers are operating globally, including in India, but they mostly rely on electricity from national grids. The carbon intensity of hydrogen production thus depends on the grid’s carbon intensity. While limited commercial projects are using 100% renewable energy to power electrolysers, addressing the intermittency of renewable power remains a significant challenge for round-the-clock operations.

There are few commercial projects in India, but some are in the pipeline and expected to become operational within a year or two, producing green hydrogen. As of now, most electrolysers operate on grid electricity.

The Economic Viability of Producing and Utilising Green Hydrogen

In India, there has been considerable discussion about the availability of inexpensive solar power, which can be used to split water molecules into hydrogen and oxygen, thus enabling green hydrogen production.

However, the entire ecosystem involves setting up renewable energy plants, transmitting electricity to electrolyser sites for hydrogen production, and considering post-production requirements.

For industrial applications like refineries, fertilizers, or steel production, hydrogen can be used directly without intermediate pressure-boosting stages. If the end-use necessitates bottling and transportation, additional costs arise due to the need for pressure boosting, impacting net energy consumption. Moreover, storing hydrogen onboard for mobility applications requires higher pressure, typically around 350 bars.

• Considering only production costs, green hydrogen currently averages approximately $5 to $6 per kg, leveraging solar power availability. However, this cost estimate excludes storage, transportation, delivery, and compression expenses.

• Depending on transportation distances and specific requirements, the delivered cost can be approximately $8 to $9 per kg.

Efforts are underway to reduce these costs to achieve economic viability comparable to diesel or natural gas prices.

• Minimising the movement of molecules is crucial to avoid excessive costs. However, it’s also about balancing the movement of electrons and molecules.

• Another trade-off involves managing the intermittent nature of renewable energy production and integrating it with continuous electrolyser operation.

Achieving this balance and optimisation is essential to ensure green hydrogen availability at an affordable price for end consumers.

The price of hydrogen is closely tied to the cost of its primary feedstock used for its production. Whether it’s extracted from water or natural gas, the current price of hydrogen depends on the cost of the feedstock. For green hydrogen, the price is also influenced by the cost of renewable energy and electrolysers.

India’s National Green Hydrogen Mission aspires to scale up green hydrogen production and create export opportunities. How do export aspirations align with the considerable cost of production, storage and transmission?

We need to approach this holistically. Some countries lack renewable energy sources but have the potential to produce hydrogen, requiring them to import electrons via huge transmission lines to produce hydrogen for domestic use.

Conversely, India is rich in renewable energy, particularly solar and wind, and produces green electricity at a competitive price globally. Leveraging this cheap renewable energy for green hydrogen production relies on advancements in electrolyser technology. With India’s strong manufacturing industry and abundant cheap renewable energy, we have an optimal blend to support domestic demand and potentially export hydrogen. While transmission costs will be added, it’s a matter of calculating how other countries will source their green electricity compared to India, making it crucial for Indian industries to analyse potential markets for meeting green hydrogen demand.

Challenges for Large-scale Green Hydrogen Production

• Need to align the system and the ecosystem to leverage the perceived low cost of renewable energy and integrate it with the localisation of electrolyser technology in India. The government has been supportive, offering various incentivisation schemes for electrolyser production and green hydrogen reproduction. These initiatives will catalyse internal development but require robust support.

• Research and development programs, backed by government initiatives, are crucial. It demands strong coordination among policy-making agencies, central and state ministries, independent power producers, and end consumers. The goal is to reallocate renewable energy capacities towards green hydrogen production.

• To qualify as green hydrogen, we must also meet net emission limits set by importing countries. This requires collaboration among stakeholders.

• While India addresses renewable energy availability, water availability for hydrogen production shouldn’t be overlooked. The water requirements extend beyond feedstock, involving significant amounts for cooling electrolysers and managing evaporative losses. This underscores the importance of engineering advisories and consultancies in harmonising efforts.

Viability of Hydrogen Solutions for Mobility Applications

When comparing hydrogen to traditional fuels like gasoline and diesel in transportation, hydrogen has the potential to replace diesel, especially in applications requiring longer ranges and continuous operation. Heavy-duty vehicles and those needing extended range and minimal downtime are prime candidates for hydrogen adoption.

Taxi fleet operators and service providers who rely on constant vehicle availability could benefit from hydrogen’s quick refueling time and longer range between refuels. We can expect hydrogen to make inroads in various sectors, including shipping, aviation, and railways, particularly where electrification is not feasible.

About ARUP

ARUP is a global leader in providing sustainable energy solutions. The company has a robust presence in the hydrogen space, engaging in various projects worldwide and playing a pivotal role in guiding and executing infrastructure development in India.