Skip to main content Skip to footer
Strategy & Consulting

Green hydrogen energizing India’s ambitions

August 10, 2022 5-MINUTE READ

RESEARCH REPORT

In brief

  • Green hydrogen is generated by renewable energy; it can help India control climate change through its ‘net-zero’ carbon emission goal by 2070.
  • The Government of India is focused on boosting production of green hydrogen via financial commitments, infrastructure creation, and policy incentive.
  • India must harness existing capabilities to generate low-cost renewable energy, and focus efforts on internalizing green hydrogen production.

Committing to a ‘net-zero’ ambition at Glasgow COP26, India targets to achieve it by 2070. This will involve reducing the total carbon emissions by 1 billion tonnes by 2030 and continued focus on non-fossil fuel energy generation. India will achieve the goal by transitioning to non-fossil power sources, new mobility solutions, and industrial green hydrogen.

VIEW ENLARGED IMAGE

India’s promise of embracing green hydrogen can be fulfilled by six key enablers:

Abundant and inexpensive renewable electricity and water supply.

Meeting demands by capacity building.

Developing a transmission and distribution infrastructure.

Fostering technology adoption and innovation to bring down the cost of hydrogen production.

Creating a detailed policy framework for green hydrogen production.

Providing necessary funding for manufacturing industrial green hydrogen.

Besides these key enablers, India can avail its inherent advantage of low-cost renewable energy power generation capabilities.

Figure 2: Comparison of selected national green hydrogen targets, installed capacities and government announced investments, Accenture Research

VIEW ENLARGED IMAGE

Green hydrogen is the fuel of the future

Building a non-fossil fuel energy generation capacity of 500 gigawatts (GW) by 2030 will bring down the carbon intensity of the economy by 45%, and prove critical to establish a green hydrogen economy.

 

An estimated green industrial hydrogen production of 7 million metric tonnes per annum (MMTPA) by 2040 and 114 MMTPA by 2070 will put India on track to reach the ‘net-zero’ target. To accelerate its energy transition efforts, India has set an ambitious target of green hydrogen production of 5 MMTPA by 2030. Achieving this target can displace around 11 MMTPA of natural gas or 25 MMTPA of coal, thereby avoiding carbon emissions of 34 to 57 MMTCO2/year by 2030.  

 

Green hydrogen can help tackle the climate change issue by bringing down energy dependence on fossil fuels while unleashing long-term economic gains for India.

12MMTP

India's approximate demand  for hydrogen is expected by 2030 (1)

45%

India is commitment to reduce the carbon intensity of the economy by 2030 (2)

100 GW

India's minimum requirement electrolyzers along with 100 GW of renewable generation capacity to achieve the production target of 5 MMTPA by 2030 (3)

Steps towards India’s energy-efficient future

Technology deployment, along with policy and economic support from the government, can aid in achieving expected sustainability outcomes. Public and private sector enterprises can realize the full potential of their efforts by:

  • Defining energy transition roadmap to facilitate achievement of organizational goals and aligning efforts with business growth
  • Companies must track their expenses in electrolyzers and analyze the performance of renewable projects to optimally utilize resources
  • Devising an ‘internal carbon price’ strategy and using technology for evaluating investments
  • Building a profitable renewable energy portfolio with tailored digital solutions for strategizing green hydrogen distribution and establishing digital operations excellence centers to monitor demand

Production, distribution, and storage of green hydrogen can be optimized through a technology-based approach. This report aims to help companies comprehend the huge opportunity associated with green hydrogen and assess the scope for technology implementation.

 

1. The Potential Role of Hydrogen in India, The Energy and Resources Institute (TERI), 2020

2. Harnessing Green Hydrogen, Opportunities for Deep Decarbonisation in India, RMI, June 2022

3. A Green Hydrogen Economy for India Policy and Technology Imperatives to Lower Production Cost, Policy Brief, Council on Energy, Environment and Water (CEEW), December 2020

Hari Shankaranarayanan

Managing Director, Lead – Energy, Accenture in India

Preeti Kaushal

Managing Director, Lead – Sustainability, Resources, Accenture in India

Ankesh Nagar

Business Strategy Consultant – Energy, Accenture in India

Contributors

Areena Makker

Business Strategy Analyst – Energy, Accenture in India

Prakriti Dinesh

Business Strategy Analyst – Energy, Accenture in India

Related capabilities

Energy

The future of oil and gas - safer, smarter and cleaner.