On 1st February 2024, the Ministry of New & Renewable Energy (MNRE) released the guidelines of the “Scheme of Pilot Projects on Use of Green Hydrogen in the Shipping Sector” under the National Green Hydrogen Mission(NGHM).
- On 2nd February 2024, MNRE released guidelines of the “scheme for pilot projects on the use of Green Hydrogen in the steel sector” under NGHM.
Note: Under the NGHM, MNRE will undertake pilot projects in the shipping sector and steel sector to replace fossil fuels and fossil fuel-based feedstock with Green Hydrogen and its derivatives (like green ammonia, green methanol).
Details of the scheme – Shipping Sector:
i.Budget: The total budget outlay for the implementation of the scheme till the financial year (FY) 2025-26 is Rs 115 crore. The scheme expenditure will be met from the budget of NGHM.
ii.Thrust Areas: 2 thrust areas have been identified under the pilot projects.
- Retrofitting existing ships to make them function on Green Hydrogen or its derivatives (Component A)
- Develop bunkering and refuelling facilities in ports on international shipping lanes for fuel based on Green Hydrogen (Component B).
iii.Implementing agency: The projects will be implemented by the Ministry of Ports, Shipping and Waterways (MoPSW) and the Scheme Implementing Agencies(SIAs) nominated under the scheme.
- Shipping Corporation of India (SCI) or its successor will be the SIA for component A.
iv.Steering committee: The scheme will be monitored by the Steering Committee (SC) under the co-chairpersonship of Secretary, MoPSW(T K Ramachandran) and Secretary, MNRE(Bhupinder Singh Bhalla).
v.The administrative sanctions for the projects will be issued by MNRE based on the recommendations from the Project Appraisal Committee (PAC). PCA will be chaired by the Additional Secretary/ Joint Secretary, MoPSW(Rajesh Kumar Sinha).
Details of the scheme – Steel Sector:
i.Budget: The total budget outlay for the implementation of the scheme till the FY 2029-30 is Rs 455 crore.
ii.Thrust Areas:
- Use of Hydrogen in Direct Reduced Ironmaking process
- Use of Hydrogen in Blast Furnace
- Substitution of fossil fuels with Green Hydrogen in a gradual manner.
iii.Implementing Agency: These pilot projects will be implemented through the Ministry of Steel and SIA nominated under this Scheme.
iv.Steering committee: The scheme will be monitored by the Steering Committee (SC) under the co-chairpersonship of the Secretary of Ministry of Steel (Nagendra Nath Sinha) and the Secretary of MNRE.
v.The administrative sanctions for the projects will be issued by MNRE based on the recommendations from the PAC. PCA will be chaired by the Secretary/ Additional Secretary of Steel.
Key Points:
i.The guidelines stated that the upcoming steel plants should have the capacity to operate with green hydrogen and ensure that plants could participate in low-carbon steel markets.
ii.The scheme also considers greenfield projects aiming at 100% green steel.
About NGHM:
i.The National Green Hydrogen Mission (NGHM) was launched in January 2023 with the aim of making India the global hub for the production, usage, and export of green hydrogen and its derivatives.
ii.The total budget of NGHM is Rs. 19,744 crore up to FY 2029-30.
iii.This will contribute towards achieving India’s goal of becoming energy-independent by 2047 and achieving Net Zero by 2070.
About the Ministry of New & Renewable Energy (MNRE):
Union Minister– Raj Kumar Singh (Constituency- Arrah, Bihar)
Minister of State(MoS)– Bhagwanth Khuba (Constituency- Bidar, Karnataka)
