Greenko ZeroC (GZC), a subsidiary of Indian renewable energy developer Greenko Group, has signed an agreement with Belgium’s high-capacity alkaline electrolyzer producer John Cockerill to form a 50-50 joint venture (JV), as reported by Economic Times on April 12. The JV will establish a factory manufacturing electrolyzers in India over the next 12 to 18 months, with an annual production capacity of two gigawatts (GW). With an anticipated investment of USD500m, the project will be the world’s largest electrolyzer factory outside China and provide domestic industrial users with green hydrogen at the lowest price in India.

The agreement comes as India pays hiked bills for oil and gas imports amid the increased industrial needs and rising global energy prices. Within the fiscal year ending on March 31, 2022, India’s spending on crude oil imports approached USD100bn, almost doubling from the previous year. Reportedly, the 2GW electrolyzer factory could help replace 8% of India’s annual liquified natural gas (LNG) imports. In the long run, the country is shifting from fossil fuels to renewable energy, the latter of which is expected to contribute 40% of the national power consumption by 2030. In March 2022, the Indian government also disclosed a pending Production Linked Incentive (PLI) Scheme to subsidize producers and exporters of green hydrogen or ammonia. Under the PLI plan, manufacturers of electrolyzers and their components, developers of storage facilities for hydrogen or ammonia, and studies on ammonia production loops could enjoy government subsidies.

Sources:

https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/industry/renewables/greenko-john-cockerill-to-set-up-2-electrolyser-giga-factories-for-green-hydrogen/articleshow/90784080.cms

https://www.livemint.com/companies/news/greenko-john-cockerill-to-set-up-electrolyzer-factory-in-india-11649675097100.html

https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/economy/finance/indias-oil-import-bill-to-top-100-bn-in-current-fiscal/articleshow/89865935.cms?from=mdrhttps://economictimes.indiatimes.com/industry/renewables/government-may-give-pli-like-sops-for-hydrogen-ammonia/articleshow/90189649.cms