Date: 19th November 2024
Venue: European Hydrogen Week 2024, Brussels, Belgium
In a landmark development for the global green hydrogen ecosystem, the Solar Energy Corporation of India Ltd. (SECI), under the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE), has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with H2Global Stiftung. This partnership sets the stage for enhanced collaboration and knowledge exchange, aimed at advancing green hydrogen initiatives and fostering stronger ties between India and hydrogen-importing nations.
The MoU was signed on 19th November 2024 by Shri Sanjay Sharma, Director (Solar), SECI, and Dr. Susana Moreira, Executive Director, H2Global Stiftung. The event was attended by several high-ranking officials, including Mr. Timo Bollerhey, CEO of HintCo; Mr. Markus Exenberger, Executive Director of H2Global Foundation; Shri Prashant Kumar Singh, Secretary, MNRE; Shri Abhay Bhakare, Mission Director, National Green Hydrogen Mission (NGHM); Dr. Prasad Chapekar, Deputy Secretary, MNRE; Shri K R Jyothi Lal, Additional Chief Secretary, Kerala.
The collaboration seeks to:
Enhance Knowledge Exchange: Facilitate the sharing of expertise on market-based mechanisms for green hydrogen deployment. Streamlining certification and regulatory standards, including compliance with Renewable Fuels of Non-Biological Origin (RFNBO) guidelines. Addressing trade logistics to enhance the global supply chain for hydrogen.
Develop Joint Tender Design Concepts: Work on innovative and scalable tendering models to enable India to emerge as a global hub for green hydrogen and its derivatives.
Foster International Cooperation: Strengthen partnerships between India and hydrogen-importing countries by addressing global market dynamics and logistical challenges. Engaging with stakeholders to ensure seamless integration of hydrogen projects into international markets.
India’s strategic location and abundant renewable energy resources make it a prime candidate to become a global leader in green hydrogen production. With over 25 MMT port capacity planned by 2030, this collaboration provides India with a platform to explore global market opportunities and address challenges such as trade logistics and stakeholder engagement. Companies such as Adani, AM Green, ACME, Avaada, Reliance, ReNew, Hygenco and Ocior and others areare some of the key Indian players already working on large-scale projects, including electrolyzer manufacturing, green ammonia plants, and renewable-to-hydrogen value chains.
Hintco GmbH, operating under the H2Global initiative, concluded its pilot tender for renewable ammonia in August 2024. Fertiglobe, a partnership between OCI N.V. and Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (ADNOC), emerged as the successful bidder. The contract, valued at up to €397 million, sets a contract price of €1,000 per metric ton (including delivery to Europe) and a net price of €811 per metric ton for renewable ammonia. Initial deliveries are scheduled for 2027, starting with approximately 19,500 metric tons, with cumulative deliveries expected to reach up to 397,000 metric tons by 2033.
Leading Indian developers have shown great confidence to compete effectively with Hintco's tender pricing, anticipating competitive bids in the coming rounds positioning themselves as exporters of green ammonia and its derivatives. However longer-term tenders would be key in enabling the market and providing comfort for off takers and financiers.
A notable mention to AM Green's recent Final Investment Decision (FID) for its Kakinada facility in Andhra Pradesh. This project aims to produce one million metric tons per annum (MMTPA) of green ammonia by 2026, majority of this production is intended for export, primarily to Europe with MoU’s on offtakes with over four different entities that were publicly announced.
The Solar Energy Corporation of India Ltd. (SECI), under the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE), as the nodal agency for the SIGHT Scheme subsidies under NGHM, has initiated and concluded several key tenders to promote the production and supply of green hydrogen, and its derivatives. In January 2024, SECI awarded contracts for 412,000 metric tons per annum (MTPA) of green hydrogen capacity part of mode. Building on this momentum, SECI launched an additional tender for 450,000 MTPA, which is currently underway. By June 2024, SECI further expanded its efforts under the SIGHT scheme, issuing a tender targeting the production and supply of 739,000 MTPA of green ammonia, primarily to meet the needs of fertilizer companies and aggregate domestic demand. This pioneering effort stands as one of the world's largest green ammonia procurement and supply tenders.
A joint effort from SECI and H2 Global will no doubt set new benchmarks for the industry and catalyse the green hydrogen and derivatives exports from India.
