green hydrogen: India needs 115 GW RE generation capacity, 50 bn litre demineralised water to meet green hydrogen target: Report

India will need 115 GW of renewable power generation capacity and 50 billion litres of demineralised water supply to achieve the goal of five million tonnes of green hydrogen by 2030, as per the EY India-SED Fund report. In this decade, industrial feedstock-based applications will drive the demand for green hydrogen, said the report.

Price parity between green and grey hydrogen production will determine the speed and scale of transition, said the EY-SED Fund report titled ‘Accelerating Green Hydrogen Economy’, released at the CII’s conference on ‘Green New Energy for a Net Zero India’ in Bengaluru.

The report highlights that India’s ambition to produce 5 million tonnes of green hydrogen by 2030 will need 115 GW of renewable power generation capacity and 50 billion litres of demineralised water supply.

To get a sense of this scale, the current all-India installed capacity of renewable power generation is 113 GW as of May 2022.

“The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic and the ongoing global conflict are stark reminders of how India’s dependence on energy imports and other commodities linked to global supply chains can threaten its strategic interests. The emergence of green hydrogen as a promising low carbon feedstock and energy carrier for industrial applications is a boon for India’s long-term energy security, sustainability and self-reliance,” Somesh Kumar, Partner and National Leader, Power & Utilities, EY India, said.

The levelised cost of green hydrogen production and storage (LCOH) is currently Rs 400/kg. Around 40-50 per cent of this cost can be attributed to the renewable energy power plant, 30-40 per cent for electrolyser stack and balance of system, including demineralised water supply and 20-30 per cent for compressed storage, the report said.

Sivaram Krishnamoorthy, Deputy Director, SED Fund, said, “The race to decarbonise energy-intensive industries depends on the competitiveness of green hydrogen supply chain and enabling policy ecosystem to make this happen. State governments have a key role to play in implementing recently notified green hydrogen policy and green energy open-access rules 2022 to support the industry in reducing the cost of production”.

It has suggested reducing the cost of renewable power generation and supply for GH2 production by giving waiver of intra-state transmission charges, waivers, clarity and certainty of open access charges, allowing banking of surplus energy and fungibility of green hydrogen and renewable purchase obligations.