Industry body India Hydrogen Alliance (IH2A) and the Government of Kerala has announced that it is jointly evaluating a proposal for building the Kochi Green Hydrogen (KGH2) Hub, a large-scale green hydrogen hub with multiple use-cases, to the Government of Kerala. The proposal envisages potential capital expenditure of USD 575 mn, to build a 60-tonnes per day (TPD) green hydrogen plant with a 150 MW Electrolyser, Storage and Infrastructure, which could achieve giga-watt scale and build the hydrogen economy in Kerala.
The plan was shared by IH2A and the Kerala Government, today after a consultation meeting between government, industry and funding agencies.
IH2A’s KGH2 Hub plan is modelled after the Hydrogen Valley projects in the EU, to create production, storage, transmission and end-use infrastructure for green hydrogen (in compressed gas and liquified form) within a 50-km radius cluster in Kochi. It focusses on the transport use-case in the first phase, aligning with the state government’s plans for zero-emission transport, to power Hydrogen-ICE retrofitted bus fleets of 60 buses and build the required infrastructure. In the second phase, industrial demand for green hydrogen from refineries, fertilizer and chemical plants is expected to drive capacity expansion and scale-up the KGH2 hub.
Jill Evanko, Chief Executive and President, Chart Industries (NYSE: GTLS), and founding member, India Hydrogen Alliance (IH2A), said, “The KGH2 Hub plan is a blueprint of how India can build large-scale, commercial green hydrogen infrastructure. Starting with the right scale of project development is important. It indicates India’s seriousness in building a domestic green hydrogen economy and its role in shaping the emerging global green hydrogen market.”
Dr. K A Abraham, Chief Principal Secretary to the Chief Minister, Government of Kerala, said, “Green Hydrogen is part of Kerala’s Net Zero Pathway. We are actively collaborating with industry and investors to replicate the hydrogen valleys in Europe, in Kerala. The proposed Kochi Green Hydrogen Hub is significant for its scale and its focus on building hydrogen infrastructure.”
K R Jyothilal, Principal Secretary (Power and General Administration), Government of Kerala, said, “The Kochi Green Hydrogen Hub is the first of its kind in the country, in its current form and scale. Kerela intends to lead on project development and show the path forward on green hydrogen commercialisation in India. We are actively collaborating with industry to achieve this, and our partnership with IH2A is part of this endeavor.”
A spokesperson for Reliance Industries Limited, member, India Hydrogen Alliance (IH2A), said, “Building hydrogen storage and transmission infrastructure is the first step. The KGH2 Hub plan shows the pathway for large scale project development. We support such initiatives and look forward to collaborating with players across the hydrogen value chain.”
Speaking on the preparation of the Kochi Green Hydrogen Hub (KGH2) framework, Amrit Singh Deo, Senior Managing Director, FTI Consulting, and IH2A Secretariat lead, said, “IH2A has proposed that the KGH2 Hub be developed through a public-private project consortia structure, with participation from industry, stateowned enterprises, government and multilateral funding agencies. Building hydrogen infrastructure of this scale will require global climate funding support at project development stage. The KGH2 Hub framework can bring funding agencies, project developers, producers and offtakers, together on a common platform.”
IH2A has also proposed a two-tier KGH2 governance structure, with a public-private advisory group working with project consortia structures or special purpose vehicles (SPVs), to implement the proposed plan. IH2A will continue to advise the Government of Kerela on hydrogen commercialisation and project development in the state.
The consultation meeting in Kochi included in-principle support from industry to develop the Kochi Green Hydrogen Hub (KGH2), build hydrogen infrastructure and an in-principle intent to offtake from large industrial plants in the proposed hub. A techno-commercial study would have to be undertaken, before the hub scale, investments and offtake green hydrogen pricing can be finalized.
