India's Ambitious Plans for Green Hydrogen Transportation
Key Ideas
- India's annual demand for hydrogen is significant, prompting the government to explore cost-effective and reliable transportation methods.
- Gas transmission lines are being considered as a primary mode of transporting green hydrogen, with ongoing studies and collaborations to assess feasibility.
- Initial findings suggest that blending green hydrogen in city gas distribution pipelines is viable, highlighting the potential for large-scale delivery at a low cost.
- While pipeline transportation offers advantages, technical challenges such as embrittlement and hydrogen leaks need to be addressed for reliable operations.
India is actively pursuing the transportation of green hydrogen to meet its annual demand of 6 million tonnes, accounting for 6% of global demand. The government is studying the feasibility of using gas transmission lines, leveraging the existing network spanning 33,000 km. Collaboration with entities like GAIL, IOCL, and CEA aims to explore cost dynamics and reliability of green hydrogen transportation. Initial studies indicate that pipelines could be a cheaper alternative to transmitting power for domestic use and exports. The PNGRB is working on blending hydrogen with natural gas for transportation, supported by technical and commercial assessments. Notably, a report by EIL and IIT Kanpur suggests that blending green hydrogen in city gas distribution pipelines is feasible. However, challenges like steel embrittlement, hydrogen leaks, and compression technology durability need attention for efficient pipeline operations.