The world is shifting to new sources of energy and so is India. India is heading towards a massive tech revolution and a dramatic growth in automobile sector. Not only EV, hydrogen-powered fuel cell vehicles are also in making. Crude oil is becoming expensive and environmentally unsustainable. Thus, it is the need of the hour to replace conventional fuel vehicles with better options.
In a first step towards PM Modi’s aim to achieve net zero carbon emission by 2070, State gas utility GAIL (India) Ltd has commenced India’s unique project of mixing hydrogen into the natural gas system at Indore, Madhya Pradesh.
India’s project to blend hydrogen into natural gas system
Under the project, the hydrogen blended natural gas reportedly will be supplied to Avantika Gas Ltd. It is one of GAIL’s joint venture with HPCL. Notably, the blended hydrogen gas will be supplied for retailing of CNG to automobiles and piped natural gas to households in Indore.
The company, in a statement, said, ”In line with the National Hydrogen Mission, GAIL has started hydrogen blending as a pilot project to establish the techno-commercial feasibility of blending hydrogen in City Gas Distribution (CGD) network. This project marks the stepping stone of India’s journey towards hydrogen-based and carbon-neutral future.”
GAIL has begun blending grey hydrogen at the city gate station (CGS), Indore. ”This grey hydrogen would subsequently be replaced by green hydrogen,” it said.
The hydrogen is classified as blue, green or grey on the basis of how it is formed. When natural gas is split into hydrogen and CO2, it is blue hydrogen. The CO2 is captured and then stored. Grey hydrogen is formed the way blue hydrogen is, but in this process, the CO2 is not captured and is released into the atmosphere.
What is Green hydrogen?
Green hydrogen is the fuel produced through the electrolysis of water with the use of renewable power. The water is thus split into hydrogen and oxygen. The green hydrogen produced in this process is free from any emissions as cleaner technologies like solar power or wind power can be used for the entire process. Also, green hydrogen has numerous applications like industrial feedstock, fuel cell vehicles and energy storage.
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During his Independence Day speech last year, PM Modi had announced that India will become the biggest exporter of green hydrogen in the years to come. He also launched the National Hydrogen Mission to encourage the green hydrogen industry in the country.
Presently, the production of green hydrogen is an expensive process and remains a nascent technology. However, India is looking to develop itself as a global hub of green hydrogen.