Lok Sabha Question No. 2924 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2021-08-05
Subject: Hydrogen as an Automotive Fuel
Ministry: NEW AND RENEWABLE ENERGY
Asked by: Jagdambika Pal

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF NEW AND RENEWABLE ENERGY

## LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO-2924

ANSWERED ON-05/08/2021

## HYDROGEN AS AN AUTOMOTIVE FUEL

## 2924. SHRI JAGDAMBIKA PAL

Will the Minister of NEW AND RENEWABLE ENERGY be pleased to state:

- a) the steps being taken/proposed to be taken by the Government for use of Hydrogen as an automotive fuel in the country;
- b) the steps being taken/proposed to be taken for development of Hydrogen Fuel Cells or Hydrogen Power Cells for various uses in the country;
- c) whether the Government has provided or released specific funds for research and development of Hydrogen as a fuel in the country during the last three years and the current year;
- d) if so, the details thereof; and
- e) whether any Hydrogen powered vehicle has been deployed by the Government or any private enterprise for use in the country and if so, the details thereof?

ANSWER

## THE MINISTER OF NEW & RENEWABLE ENERGY AND POWER

## (SHRI R.K. SINGH)

(a) In her Budget Speech on 1 February 2021, the Finance Minister announced the launch of a Hydrogen Energy Mission in 2021-22 for generating Hydrogen from green power sources. Accordingly, the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE) has drafted a National Hydrogen Energy Mission document which would inter-alia aim to scale up Green Hydrogen production and utilization across multiple sectors, including transportation. The draft Mission document is currently under inter-ministerial consultation.

Further, in September 2016, Ministry of Road Transport and Highways (MoRTH) has notified Hydrogen as a fuel  for  automotive  application  for  Bharat  Stage  VI  vehicles.  In  September  2020,  MoRTH  has  specified  the safety  and type  approval  requirements for  hydrogen fuel cell vehicles in Automotive  Industry Standard (AIS) 157. Also, in September 2020, 18% blend of Hydrogen with CNG (HCNG) has been notified as an automotive fuel.

(b)to(d)An  R&D  project  titled  'Design  and  Development  of  20  kW  Low  Temperature  Polymer  Electrolyte Membrane Fuel Cell with high indigenous content' has been sanctioned by MNRE to International Advanced Research Centre for Powder Metallurgy and New Materials, Chennai at a total project cost of Rs 21.42 crores (with MNRE share of Rs 17.74 crore). Rs 7.9 crores has been released under this project in 2019-2020.

Further, Department of Science and Technology has launched Hydrogen and Fuel Cell Program and Advanced Hydrogen  and  Fuel  Cell  program  to  support  research  on  Hydrogen  and  Fuel  Cell.  The  details  of  the  funds released by DST for research and development of Hydrogen.

| Year    | Funds Released    |
|---------|-------------------|
| 2019-20 | Rs.20,38,28,770/- |
| 2020-21 | Rs.83,01,158/-    |

(e)Various  hydrogen  powered  vehicles  have  been  developed  and  demonstrated  under  projects  supported  by Government of India. These include 6 Fuel Cell buses (by Tata Motors Ltd.), 50 hydrogen enriched CNG (H-CNG) buses in Delhi(by Indian  Oil Corporation Ltd. in collaboration with Govt. of NCT of Delhi), 2 hydrogen fuelled Internal  Combustion  Engine  buses  (by  IIT  Delhi  in  collaboration  with  Mahindra  &  Mahindra),  fifteen  hydrogen fuelled 3-wheelers (by IIT Delhi in collaboration with Mahindra & Mahindra), 2 Hydrogen-Diesel dual fuel cars(by Mahindra & Mahindra) and one fuel cell car (by CSIR-National Chemical Laboratory, CSIR-Central Electrochemical Laboratory and CSIR-National Physical Laboratory).