India’s green hydrogen push could attract Rs 10 lakh cr investment by 2030—Hydrogen mission director
The National Green Hydrogen Mission's director stated that India's green hydrogen push could attract ₹8-10 lakh crore in investment by 2030, covering production capacity as well as associated pipeline, storage, transport, and port infrastructure
The government plans to expand green hydrogen use beyond its current base in oil refineries and fertiliser plants (which together consume over 6 million tonnes of hydrogen annually, currently sourced from fossil-fuel-based "grey" hydrogen) into new sectors such as mobility, steel production, and shipping
Mobility-sector progress includes over 6 operational hydrogen fuelling stations, trials underway on more than 20 highways, and a target of 400-500 hydrogen-powered buses and trucks by 2030
Indian project developers accounted for an estimated 40-50% of global hydrogen offtake agreements in 2024-25, with capacity contracted toward European and Asia-Pacific buyers, positioning India as a prospective hydrogen exporter
Officials noted that cost reduction in green hydrogen production depends on achieving economies of scale, which in turn requires opening up new demand sectors beyond the traditional industrial users
National Green Hydrogen Mission (NGHM), 2023
The NGHM is the Union government's flagship programme to make India a global hub for the production, usage, and export of green hydrogen, and to reduce dependence on imported fossil fuels in hard-to-abate industrial sectors. It was approved by the Union Cabinet in January 2023.
Key Details
- Total outlay: ₹19,744 crore through FY 2029-30, comprising ₹17,490 crore for the SIGHT programme, ₹1,466 crore for pilot projects, ₹400 crore for R&D, and ₹388 crore for other mission components
- Headline target: at least 5 million metric tonnes per annum (MMTPA) of green hydrogen production capacity by 2030
- The mission's 2030 target is expected to be underpinned by roughly 125 GW of dedicated renewable energy capacity and cumulative investment exceeding ₹8 lakh crore, consistent with the figures cited by the mission director in this report
- Administered by the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE)
The ₹8-10 lakh crore investment estimate cited in this report aligns with the NGHM's own stated investment expectations for its 5 MMTPA-by-2030 production target, reinforcing that the mission's core capacity goal remains the reference point for measuring progress.
India's Statutory Definition of "Green" Hydrogen
Because "hydrogen" can be produced through multiple pathways with very different carbon footprints, India has notified an official emission-based standard to certify which hydrogen qualifies as "green" for the purposes of mission incentives and international credibility.
Key Details
- The MNRE's Green Hydrogen Standard (notified August 2023) sets the threshold at a well-to-gate emission of not more than 2 kg of CO2-equivalent per kg of hydrogen produced, averaged over a 12-month period
- "Well-to-gate" emissions cover water treatment, electrolysis, gas purification, and drying/compression of the hydrogen — i.e., the full production process, not just the electricity source
- The standard applies to both electrolysis-based and biomass-based hydrogen production routes
- The Bureau of Energy Efficiency (BEE), under the Ministry of Power, is the nodal authority responsible for accrediting agencies that monitor, verify, and certify green hydrogen production against this standard
- This is distinguished from "grey" hydrogen (produced from natural gas via steam methane reforming, high emissions) and "blue" hydrogen (grey hydrogen production paired with carbon capture and storage)
The refineries and fertiliser plants referenced in this report currently use grey hydrogen; the mission's core objective is to substitute this with certified green hydrogen meeting the 2 kg CO2e/kg threshold, which is the technical benchmark against which "green" claims in this sector must be measured.
SIGHT Programme — Production and Manufacturing Incentives
The Strategic Interventions for Green Hydrogen Transition (SIGHT) Programme is the principal financial-incentive mechanism under the NGHM, designed to close the cost gap between green hydrogen and fossil-fuel-based alternatives by subsidising both domestic electrolyser manufacturing and green hydrogen production.
Key Details
- SIGHT has two components: Component I incentivises domestic electrolyser manufacturing (outlay of ₹4,440 crore for FY 2025-26 to FY 2029-30, with incentives starting near USD 50/kW of electrolyser capacity and tapering over the contract period); Component II incentivises green hydrogen production itself
- Under Component I's first tranche, 1,500 MW of electrolyser manufacturing capacity was awarded to select companies in January 2024
- The rationale behind scaling incentives to new demand sectors (mobility, steel, shipping) is explicitly to create the volume needed to bring down per-unit production costs, as referenced by the mission director's comments on economies of scale in this report
- Green ammonia, made using green hydrogen, is a related derivative product being incentivised for fertiliser-sector import substitution
The mission's expansion beyond captive industrial demand (refineries, fertiliser) into mobility, steel, and shipping is the strategy through which SIGHT's cost-reduction objective — repeatedly emphasised as dependent on scale — is meant to be achieved.
- Estimated investment potential by 2030: ₹8-10 lakh crore (production alone), with further spending needed on pipelines, storage, transport, and port infrastructure
- NGHM production target: 5 million tonnes per annum (MMTPA) of green hydrogen by 2030
- NGHM total outlay: ₹19,744 crore (through FY 2029-30)
- Current grey hydrogen consumption in refineries and fertiliser plants: over 6 million tonnes annually
- Green hydrogen emission threshold (India standard): ≤2 kg CO2-equivalent per kg H2, well-to-gate, 12-month average
- Mobility sector 2030 target: 400-500 hydrogen-powered buses/trucks
- India's share of global hydrogen offtake agreements (2024-25): approximately 40-50%