Stepping on the gas on green hydrogen
India’s drive to decarbonise is ambitious, homegrown, and admirable. It reflects a keen desire to attain global leadership and leapfrog from black to green. The new hydrogen policy is a step in that direction. It is a statement of intent, committing to create an environment conducive to hydrogen production and use. In many ways, it is similar to the renewable energy target announced in 2015.
India already is a world leader in the growth rate of renewable energy. Targets initially proposed have been achieved and bigger ambition articulated. Solar (50 GW) and wind capacity (40 GW) form a significant share in the overall system capacity of 393 GW. Both solar and wind are diurnal and seasonal. The augmentation of renewables is currently largely from thermal plants. As thermal plants are scaled back, the most desirable sources having load following characteristics and a relatively low levelised cost of production will need to be considered. Two such technologies are advanced geothermal systems and small modular nuclear reactors. Each of these near-zero-carbon sources offers the promise of load following, with at-scale costs projected to be under $0.07/kWh.
