Kerala mulls green hydrogen policy, draft ready, says Minister

Kerala Electricity Minister K Krishnankutty

Thiruvananthapuram | The Kerala government is mulling formulating a policy on green hydrogen, and discussions are progressing at various levels, Kerala Electricity Minister K Krishnankutty said on Wednesday.

A draft of the green hydrogen policy has been prepared and submitted to the government by the Agency for New and Renewable Energy Research and Technology (ANERT), the state's nodal agency for renewable energy, he told the state Assembly.

"Discussions are going on at various levels. It is expected to be finalised soon and get clearance," he said while speaking during the question hour.

According to Krishnankutty, the state government has already received a nod from the Union Ministry of Science and Technology to implement the ambitious "hydrogen valley innovation cluster" project under the aegis of the ANERT.

The 133.18 crore project has been approved as part of the National Green Hydrogen Mission (NGHM) of the Centre, and it is one of the four such projects sanctioned at the national level.

"A total of 57 tonnes of green hydrogen is targeted to be produced in the pilot phase," he said.

The minister noted that heavy road transport vehicles, houseboats and so on would be among the key areas in which the green hydrogen would be used in the pilot phase.

Though green hydrogen is comparatively expensive energy source, at present, its role is vital for the state's efforts to reduce carbon emissions, Krishnsnkutty said.

It is expected to play a key role in helping the state achieve its goal of becoming carbon neutral by 2050, the minister added.