MoS Naik urges industry, global firms to invest in Green Hydrogen sector

Business Standard

19-06-2025

Minister of State for New & Renewable Energy Shripad Yesso Naik on Thursday said that Green Hydrogen has the power to ensure energy security and called upon industry leaders to invest in research and development and to build infrastructure in this field.
Addressing the inaugural 'CII International Business Conclave on Green Hydrogen' the minister highlighted that Green Hydrogen has the power to reduce dependency on fossil fuels and enhance industrial competitiveness across sectors.
"I invite global companies, governments, and financing institutions to partner with us in green hydrogen research, innovation, and trade," the minister said and called upon "India's industry to invest in R&D, scale manufacturing, build infrastructure, and develop human capital."
The minister said Green Hydrogen is not just a fuel, it is a commitment to the planet, to future generations, and to sustainable prosperity.
For India, with its strong Micro, Small and Medium Enterprise (MSME) base and varied industrial clusters, distributed models can unlock local demand and drive bottom-up growth, he said.
These models will not only strengthen domestic hydrogen consumption but also make the green fuel more accessible and regionally balanced. "In tandem, we are encouraging the development of Green Hydrogen corridors across the country," he said.
Under the SIGHT programme, tenders have already been issued for 42,000 metric tonnes of Green Hydrogen per annum for refineries and over 7.2 lakh metric tonnes of Green Ammonia for fertilizers, he noted.
Our strategy to position India as a global Green Hydrogen hub also depends on robust international partnerships, he opined.
India is working with key partners -- including the EU, Japan, Singapore, Germany, and the Netherlands -- to establish offtake agreements, certification frameworks, and shared infrastructure for storage, transport, and trade, he noted.
New & Renewable Energy Secretary Santosh Kumar Sarangi said that Green Hydrogen has a great future.
He said the government is already working on four elements related to fuel and those are regulation, incentives, standards and collaborations with stakeholders.
He also stated that the ministry is working with industry on the definition of Green Hydrogen.
Chairman ReNew, Sumant Sinha opined that Green Hydrogen is essential for energy transition. According to Sinha India needs 40 million tonnes of Green Hydrogen (annually) to achieve the goal of net zero by 2070.
He suggested that India needs to replace the use of 6 million tonnes of Grey Hydrogen by Green Hydrogen.
He pointed that high cost of Green Hydrogen which is USD 4.5 per kg, while Grey Hydrogen is available for half a USD.
He suggested subsidies for boosting Green Hydrogen production in the country.
He was of the view that India needs to deal with issues of high cost, GST, long term contracts and demand creation to boost Green Hydrogen in the country.