India yet to catch up hydrogen economy

If decarbonisation is the order of the day, so is the move towards the hydrogen economy. At least that's what the latest study by Frost & Sullivan suggests. Global hydrogen production is projected to be more than double, reaching 168 million tonnes by 2030 from 71 million tonnes (MT) in 2020, with revenue expected to reach $420 billion in 2030 from $177.3 billion in 2020. There has actually been a growing interest in hydrogen as a low- or zero-carbon energy. Countries across the world have started to consider a hydrogen-based economy as the answer to the growing concerns over increasing carbon emissions, energy security, and climate change, and India is no exception.

However, India is still in its early stages in the adoption of hydrogen technology, the enormous potential and abundant RES and coal reserves that the country has notwithstanding, feels Frost & Sullivan.

"For the hydrogen economy to become a reality, decisive government actions are required in four key areas. Support R&D activities related to technologies involved in the production, storage, transport, and utilization of hydrogen and provide incentives to companies for developing the hydrogen and carbon capture utilization and storage (CCUS) infrastructure. A roadmap towards a hydrogen economy needs to be developed, which addresses the socio-economic barriers inhibiting the growth of the technology and mandating policies towards decarbonisation," says Swagath Navin Manohar, Industry Analyst, Industrial Practice at Frost & Sullivan.

Compared to India, the US, on its parts, is likely to become the largest exporter of hydrogen and developer of hydrogen infrastructure across LATAM, Africa, and Southeast Asia, the UK is also working on to capitalize on its economic growth and abundant RES capacity and scale its hydrogen technology solutions and infrastructure, in order to meet its net zero-carbon target by 2050. Germany is already a global leader in the development of hydrogen and fuel cell (FC) technologies. A majority of the focus on hydrogen technologies, public and private R&D, pilot and demonstration projects is towards strengthening the country's automotive industry. France aims to reach 10 per cent zero-carbon hydrogen adoption for industrial applications by 2023 and 40 per cent by 2028 under its new "The Hydrogen Plan".

Asian countries like China, has accelerated the development of hydrogen-based technologies and hydrogen infrastructure in recent years after recognizing the importance of hydrogen in its transition from a carbon-based to a hydrogen-based economy. Japan is also heavily investing (through public funding) in R&D related to production, storage, and development of the hydrogen infrastructure for import and utilization across various areas.

Looking towards India, Manohar says: "While the cost of establishing a hydrogen economy will be high, the promises associated with hydrogen - as an important tool in catalyzing the transition towards sustainable energy economy- are huge. Although the current application of hydrogen is mainly in the industrial sector, it could be used as a fuel across the mobility, maritime and aviation sectors, and as an energy storage system (ESS) across the power generation sector."