“Under the green tug transition programme, the Jawaharlal Nehru Port, Paradip Port, VOC Port and the Deendayal Port will be buying two green tugs each. In addition, hydrogen hubs will be set up at VOC and Deendayal ports to catalyse the transition towards green fuel,”
India’s plans to introduce hydrogen as a fuel have gained momentum with the VO Chidambaranar (VOC) Port in Tamil Nadu and the Deendayal Port in Gujarat all set to develop hydrogen hubs.
The shipping ministry has asked these two ports to also buy hydrogen powered ‘green tug’ boats, used for ushering large ships into berths, said officials aware of the development. The Cochin Shipyard is in advanced stages of developing green tugs that run on hydrogen, they said.
“Under the green tug transition programme, the Jawaharlal Nehru Port, Paradip Port, VOC Port and the Deendayal Port will be buying two green tugs each. In addition, hydrogen hubs will be set up at VOC and Deendayal ports to catalyse the transition towards green fuel,” a senior official aware of the development told.
In addition, the Centre is aiming to have two Indian ships that are powered by green hydrogen or its derivative fuels by 2027.
This will be followed by the addition of at least two ships powered by green fuels every year, said officials. These plans are in line with India’s goals to decarbonise its ports under the Harit Sagar Green Port Guidelines 2023.
The objective of the guidelines is to minimise waste through efforts to “reduce, reuse, repurpose and recycle” to attain zero waste discharge from port operations and promote monitoring, based on environmental performance indicators.
The Green Ports Policy paves the way for incentives to fleet owners for adoption of compressed natural gas, LNG, electric or green hydrogen-powered trucks. The move is aimed at reducing the intensity of emissions at major ports.
