'Hydrogen future of transportation industry': Nitin Gadkari says trials under way on 10 routes
The Ministry of Road Transport and Highways announced pilot hydrogen fuel trials underway on 10 transport routes across India, described at the Prawaas 5.0 and Bharat Prawaas Awards event in Gandhinagar
The routes span multiple states, including Greater Noida–Delhi–Agra, Bhubaneswar–Konark–Puri, Ahmedabad–Vadodara–Surat, Sahibabad–Faridabad–Delhi, Pune–Mumbai, Jamshedpur–Kalinga Nagar, Thiruvananthapuram–Kochi, Kochi–Edappally, Jamnagar–Ahmedabad, and the NH-16 Visakhapatnam–Bayyavaram stretch
The trials were framed as part of the government's broader push toward cleaner mobility, alongside existing initiatives on biofuels and other alternative fuels
The announcement did not specify a fixed date for scaling the trials into full commercial deployment
Green Hydrogen vs Blue and Grey Hydrogen — Production Pathways
Hydrogen used as a transport fuel is classified by its production method: "grey hydrogen" is produced from natural gas via steam methane reforming, releasing significant CO2; "blue hydrogen" uses the same process but pairs it with carbon capture and storage; "green hydrogen" is produced by electrolysis of water using renewable electricity, making it the only pathway with near-zero lifecycle emissions. India's hydrogen mobility push is explicitly oriented toward green hydrogen.
Key Details
- Electrolysis splits water into hydrogen and oxygen using electricity; when that electricity comes from solar, wind, or hydro sources, the resulting hydrogen is classified as "green"
- Green hydrogen currently costs more per kilogram than grey hydrogen due to renewable electricity and electrolyser capital costs, which is why government-backed pilot routes and viability-gap funding are used to build initial demand and drive down costs through scale
- Hydrogen can be used in transport either via fuel cells (converting hydrogen to electricity onboard to power electric motors) or via direct combustion in modified internal combustion engines — both are being piloted in different Indian trials
- Global hydrogen colour classification also includes "pink" (nuclear-powered electrolysis) and "turquoise" (methane pyrolysis), though these are not central to India's current mobility trials
The 10-route trials are field tests of hydrogen-fuelled vehicles (buses/trucks) intended to validate green hydrogen refuelling infrastructure and vehicle performance ahead of any wider rollout on national highways.
National Green Hydrogen Mission (2023) — The Policy Framework Behind the Trials
The National Green Hydrogen Mission, approved by the Union Cabinet in January 2023 and administered by the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE), provides the overarching policy and funding framework under which hydrogen mobility pilots — including road transport trials — are being rolled out across ministries.
Key Details
- Total initial outlay: Rs 19,744 crore up to 2029-30, with Rs 17,490 crore allocated to the SIGHT (Strategic Interventions for Green Hydrogen Transition) programme and Rs 1,466 crore to pilot projects across sectors including transport, shipping, and industry
- Mission target: at least 5 MMT (million metric tonnes) per annum of green hydrogen production capacity by 2030, alongside about 125 GW of associated renewable energy capacity addition
- The Ministry of Road Transport and Highways runs complementary pilot projects for hydrogen fuel-cell and hydrogen internal-combustion-engine buses and trucks, coordinating with MNRE's broader green hydrogen ecosystem-building mandate
- Projected outcomes by 2030: over 6 lakh jobs created and nearly 50 MMT per annum of CO2-equivalent emissions averted
The 10-route hydrogen transport trials operationalise the Mission's transport-sector demand-creation goal, testing real-world logistics (refuelling, vehicle range, cost) before any policy decision on scaling hydrogen vehicles nationally.
Alternative Fuel Vehicles — Distinguishing BEV, FCEV, and Hybrid Powertrains
Hydrogen fuel-cell vehicles (FCEVs) are one of several alternative powertrain categories being piloted in Indian transport alongside Battery Electric Vehicles (BEVs) and hybrids. FCEVs use a fuel cell stack to convert hydrogen into electricity onboard to power an electric motor, whereas BEVs store grid electricity directly in batteries, and hybrids combine an internal combustion engine with an electric motor/battery.
Key Details
- FCEVs offer faster refuelling (minutes, similar to conventional fuel) and longer range than most BEVs, making them attractive for heavy-duty, long-haul routes such as highway freight corridors — a likely reason several of the 10 pilot routes are inter-city/highway stretches
- BEVs currently dominate India's light passenger vehicle segment under the FAME (Faster Adoption and Manufacturing of Electric Vehicles) scheme framework, while hydrogen is being positioned for heavier, longer-range use cases (buses, trucks)
- India's hydrogen mobility trials are distinct from, but complementary to, the PM E-DRIVE scheme and other EV incentive programmes targeting battery-electric adoption
- Global experience (from hydrogen rail and road pilots) shows FCEVs face higher capital and fuel costs than BEVs on shorter routes, reinforcing why India's hydrogen road trials are concentrated on longer inter-city corridors rather than short urban routes
The choice of predominantly inter-city and highway routes among the 10 pilot corridors aligns with the technical case for hydrogen's advantage over batteries in longer-range, heavy-duty transport applications.
- Number of pilot hydrogen trial routes announced: 10, spanning states including Uttar Pradesh, Delhi, Odisha, Gujarat, Maharashtra, Jharkhand, Kerala, and Andhra Pradesh
- Event: Prawaas 5.0 and Bharat Prawaas Awards, Gandhinagar (10 July 2026)
- Nodal ministry for hydrogen mobility policy: Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (National Green Hydrogen Mission); trials coordinated with the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways
- National Green Hydrogen Mission: approved January 2023; outlay Rs 19,744 crore; target 5 MMT/annum green hydrogen production by 2030
- Green hydrogen production method: electrolysis of water using renewable electricity (distinct from grey/blue hydrogen)
- Projected Mission outcomes by 2030: over 6 lakh jobs, ~50 MMT/annum CO2-equivalent emissions averted