India sets a target of 5 MMT annual green hydrogen production by 2030

Ms. Nirmala Sitharaman, the Union Finance Minister, has announced India’s target of green hydrogen to reach an annual production of 5 million metric tonnes (MMT) by 2030, while presenting the Budget 2023 in the parliament. She also said that India is moving forward firmly for the ‘panchamrit’ and net-zero carbon emissions by 2070 to help in the green industrial and economic transition.

She stated that the National Green Hydrogen Mission will facilitate the transition of the economy to low carbon intensity and reduce dependence on fossil fuel imports. Furthermore, she proposed an allocation of US$ 4.29 billion (Rs. 35,000 crores) for priority capital investments towards energy transition and net zero objectives and energy security.

The Finance Minister highlighted the vision for 'LiFE', or Lifestyle for Environment, aimed at spurring a movement for an environmentally conscious lifestyle, and said that the budget builds our focus on 'Green Growth', which will guide us through the Amrit Kaal. A detailed framework for Pumped Storage Projects will also be formulated, she added. A Green Credit Programme was also proposed to be notified under the Environment (Protection) Act. She stated that a ‘Prime Minister’s Programme for Restoration, Awareness, Nourishment, And Amelioration of Mother Earth’ will be launched to incentivize States and Union Territories to promote alternative fertilizers and balanced use of chemical fertilizers.

In addition, a Galvanizing Organic Bio-Agro Resources Dhan (GOBARdhan) Scheme was announced which aims at establishing 500 new ‘waste to wealth’ plants, along with the announcement of a proposal for introducing a 5% compressed biogas (CBG) mandate in the due course. Building on India's success in afforestation, she announced that a 'Mangrove Initiative for Shoreline Habitats and Tangible Incomes (MISHTI)' will be taken up for mangrove plantations along the coastline and on salt pan land.

Disclaimer: This information has been collected through secondary research and IBEF is not responsible for any errors in the same.