The Indian government has approved a National Green Hydrogen Mission to make India a global hub for the production, utilization, and export of green hydrogen and its derivatives, the government announced on Wednesday.
An official statement said the federal Cabinet chaired by Premier Narendra Modi approved the mission which will help India achieve independence in energy and decarbonization of major sectors of the economy.
The initial budget for the mission will be 197.4 billion Indian rupees ($2.38 billion).
Development of a green hydrogen production capacity of at least 5 MMT (million metric tons) per annum, creation of over 600,000 jobs, and cut in greenhouse gas emissions were listed among the outcomes of the mission by 2030.
The mission will have wide-ranging benefits – the creation of export opportunities for green hydrogen and its derivatives; decarbonization of industrial, mobility, and energy sectors; and reduction in dependence on imported fossil fuels, the government said.
Senior Indian Minister Piyush Goyal called it a “huge push to green energy.”
“A historic step towards making India a global hub for production, utilization & export of green hydrogen, further reducing dependence on fossil fuel imports,” he wrote on Twitter.
