Month: December 2022

This December, India took over the Group of 20 presidency. The world’s third-largest emitter is expanding its transition strategy beyond solar development and into emerging fields such as hydrogen.

Current Energy Situation and Future Forecasts

• India is the only country that has kept its Paris Agreement (21st Conference of Parties or COP21 to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change) commitments, with an exponential increase in renewable energy capacity.
• Renewable energy: It is expected that by 2050, 80-85 percent of India’s total power capacity will come from renewables if the nationally determined contributions commitments are met.
• Reducing the use of fossil fuels: India has committed to increasing the share of non-fossil fuels in total electricity generation capacity to 40% by 2030.

Hydrogen energy: Potential

• 6 million tonnes of hydrogen: Each year, India consumes approximately six million tonnes of hydrogen to produce ammonia and methanol in industrial sectors such as fertilizers and refineries.
• Rising hydrogen demand: This could rise to 28 million tonnes by 2050, owing primarily to increased industrial demand.

Promotion of Green Hydrogen

• Search for generating technology: Since the Union Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE) announced that it is time for green hydrogen, private players have been looking for new generating technologies.
• With the challenges of electrolyzer capacity for generating green hydrogen globally, finding alternatives to foster green hydrogen in the country is critical.
• Central government incentives: The central government, as the primary enabler of such projects, has been developing new initiatives, policies, and schemes to unlock the potential of green hydrogen generation and increase demand for it.
• Rational resource utilization: The country’s long-term low-emission development strategy, which was submitted to the UNFCCC at COP27, was centered on the rational utilization of national resources for energy security in a just, smooth, and sustainable manner.
• Partnership with a private player: The Pune Municipal Commission (PMC) has partnered with business management consultant The Green Billions (TGBL) to manage its waste and convert it into usable green hydrogen. Variate Pune Waste to Energy Private Ltd, a special purpose vehicle or subsidiary of TGBL, will carry out the work.
• Waste management: The new hydrogen-generation facility will address major issues such as inefficient waste management and carbon emissions. Waste management is one of the most pressing issues in the country, and it is blamed for pollution in the environment.
• Reducing carbon emissions: Pune, Maharashtra’s second-largest city, is home to numerous industries, including steel, fertilizers, and pharmaceuticals. In 2017, the city’s emissions increased by 12% to 1.64-tonne carbon dioxide equivalent (tCO2Eq) per capita, up from 1.46-tonne tCO2Eq per capita in 2012.

How Hydrogen will be generated?

• For the next 30 years, Variate Pune Waste to Energy Private Ltd will manage and utilize 350 tonnes per day (TPD) of municipal waste to generate hydrogen. This waste will be made up of biodegradable, non-biodegradable, and household hazardous waste.
• Technology for plasma gasification: The waste’s Refuse-Derived Fuel (RDF) would then be used to generate hydrogen via plasma gasification technology. The technology was created in collaboration with Bhabha Atomic Research Institute (BARC) and Indian Institute of Science, Bengaluru.
• 9MT Tonnes of H2: It is estimated that 350 TPD waste would generate 150TPD RDF and 9MT tonnes of H2.
• Decarbonization of the city: The hydrogen produced at the facility will be used locally to assist the city in lowering its emissions. As the Centre focuses on industrial decarbonization and the challenges of just transition, the project has the potential to be a game changer in assisting industries in reducing carbon emissions.

@the end

In India, where the hydrogen industry is still in its infancy, it is critical to keep hydrogen prices competitive in order to expand its use in various sectors. TGBL will work on this by making hydrogen more affordable and easier to switch in the transition period.

Source: https://www.downtoearth.org.in/blog/energy/india-is-all-set-to-go-for-its-first-waste-to-hydrogen-project-86823

In order to reduce emissions and become a major export player in the field, the government is planning a $2 billion incentive program for the green hydrogen industry.

What exactly is Green Hydrogen?

• Green hydrogen is hydrogen gas created by the electrolysis of water.
• It is an energy-intensive process that uses renewable energy to split water into hydrogen and oxygen.
• Green hydrogen currently costs between $300 and $400 per kilogram in India.

Hydrogen Energy

• In comparison to hydrocarbons, which have a net carbon content in the range of 75-85 percent, hydrogen is an important source of energy because it has zero carbon content and is a non-polluting source of energy.
• Hydrogen energy is expected to cut carbon emissions, which are expected to increase by 1.5 billion tonnes by 2021.
• It has the most energy by weight and the least amount of energy by volume.
• According to the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA), hydrogen will account for 6% of total energy consumption by 2050.
• Hydrogen energy is still in its early stages of development, but it has significant potential to aid in the transition from hydrocarbons to renewables.

Why hydrogen?

• Hydrogen is a non-toxic, nonmetallic, odorless, tasteless, colorless, and highly combustible diatomic gas at standard temperature and pressure.
• When combined with oxygen, hydrogen fuel produces no emissions. It is suitable for use in fuel cells and internal combustion engines. It is also used as a propulsion fuel for spacecraft.
• Hydrogen can be obtained from a variety of sources, including natural gas, nuclear power, biomass, and renewable energy sources such as solar and wind.
• Carbon reduction: India remains committed to environmental and climate causes, with a strong emphasis on renewable energy and energy efficiency measures.
• Diversification of our energy basket: This is the key lever that will enable this transition. That is why the arrival of hydrogen at the forefront is a welcome development.

How Hydrogen can be produced?

• Commercial viability Hydrogen can be produced from hydrocarbons such as natural gas, oil, and coal using techniques such as steam methane reforming, partial oxidation, and coal gasification.
• Water, sunlight, and wind can be converted into energy through electrolysis, photolysis, and other thermo-chemical processes.

How is green hydrogen can be produced?

• Green hydrogen is typically generated from the water today via electrolysis, a process that uses an electric current to split water into its component molecules of hydrogen and oxygen.
• This is accomplished with the help of an electrolyzer, which consists of a cathode and an anode (positively and negatively charged electrodes).
• As a byproduct of this process, only oxygen – or steam – is produced.
• To qualify as “green hydrogen,” the electricity used for electrolysis must be derived from renewable sources such as wind or solar energy.
• Green hydrogen production is currently two to three times more expensive than blue hydrogen production.

How can it be used?

• Hydrogen can be used in a variety of ways. It can either be burned to generate heat or fed into a fuel cell to generate electricity.
• Fuel-cell Vehicles: Electric vehicles powered by hydrogen
• Container ships propelled by hydrogen-based liquid ammonia
• Green steel refineries use hydrogen as a heat source instead of coal.
• Hydrogen-powered electricity turbines that can generate electricity during peak demand periods to help stabilize the power grid

Green Hydrogen Production Difficulties

• The transition of India to a green hydrogen economy (GHE) is only possible if certain key issues are addressed.
• Supply-Chain Issues: The creation of a supply chain, beginning with the manufacture of electrolyzers and ending with the production of green hydrogen using electricity from a renewable energy source, is critical to the success of GHE.
• Green hydrogen requires larger-scale electrolyzers than have previously been seen.
• Storage necessitates either extremely high pressures or extremely high temperatures, both of which present technical challenges.
• Explosion Hazard: Because of its low ignition energy and high combustion energy, it is dangerous.
• Risk of use: Although automotive fuels are highly flammable, a vehicle laden with hydrogen is more likely to be vulnerable in the event of a major accident.
• High Production Costs: In order to be competitive, the price per kilogram of green hydrogen must be reduced to a benchmark of $2/kg. Green hydrogen can compete with natural gas at these prices.
• Energy intensification: Creating green hydrogen requires a massive amount of electricity, which means a massive increase in wind and solar power to meet global targets.
• Due to a lack of proper infrastructure, only 500 hydrogen stations exist worldwide. Only a few manufacturers are market participants in this technology.
• Other issues include low user acceptance and social awareness. Creating after-sales support for hydrogen technology.

Policy and Economic Challenges

• Economic sustainability: One of the most significant challenges that the industry faces in commercializing hydrogen is the economic sustainability of extracting green or blue hydrogen.
• Technological challenges: The technology used in hydrogen production and use, such as Carbon Capture and Storage (CCS) and hydrogen fuel cell technology, is in its early stages.
• Cost Factor: These technologies are expensive, which raises the cost of hydrogen production and necessitates significant investment, putting fiscal pressure on the government.
• Higher maintenance costs: Fuel cell maintenance costs after a plant is completed can be expensive.
• Legal and administrative compliance is required: certification mechanisms, recommendations, and regulations for various system components.

Way ahead

• Hydrogen energy is still in its early stages of development, but it has significant potential for facilitating India’s energy transition.
• The new policy is a vision for the future that can help the country not only reduce carbon emissions but also diversify its energy portfolio and reduce reliance on foreign sources.
• India’s transition can serve as a model for the rest of the world in terms of achieving energy security without jeopardizing the goal of sustainable development.
• The GoI must vigorously pursue the goal of establishing a GHE in order to establish India as a global manufacturing hub and to position itself at the top of the green hydrogen export market.

Source: https://www.thehindu.com/business/india-said-to-plan-2-bn-incentive-for-green-hydrogen-industry/article66310717.ece

The government intends to amend India’s six-year-old Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code (IBC).

Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code (IBC)

• The Indian Bankruptcy Code (IBC) of 2016 seeks to consolidate the existing framework by creating a single law for insolvency and bankruptcy.
• It is a one-stop shop for resolving insolvencies, which was previously a lengthy process that did not provide an economically viable solution.
• The code’s goal is to protect small investors’ interests while also making doing business easier.

Key features

• Individuals, corporations, and partnership firms have separate insolvency resolution processes outlined in the Code. Either the debtor or the creditors can start the process. Corporates and individuals have a maximum time limit for completing the insolvency resolution process.
• Companies must complete the process in 180 days, which can be extended by 90 days if a majority of creditors agree.
• The resolution process for startups (other than partnership firms), small businesses, and other companies (with assets less than Rs. 1 crore) would be completed within 90 days of the request’s initiation, which could be extended by 45 days.
• Insolvency regulator: The Insolvency and Bankruptcy Board of India is established by the Code to oversee insolvency proceedings in the country and to regulate the entities registered under it. The Board will have ten members, including representatives from the Finance and Law Ministries, as well as the RBI.
• Insolvency practitioners: Licensed professionals will oversee the insolvency process. During the insolvency process, these professionals will also have control over the debtor’s assets.
• Bankruptcy and Insolvency Adjudicator: The Code proposes two separate tribunals to supervise the insolvency resolution process for individuals and businesses:
• The National Company Law Tribunal hears cases involving corporations and limited liability partnerships, while the Debt Recovery Tribunal hears cases involving individuals and partnerships.

The changes being proposed

• Easier settlements: It is proposed that the process be divided into two phases, with phase I focusing on finding potential buyers and handing over management to the acquirer. Phase II would deal with the distribution of proceeds to creditors and the resolution of inter-creditor disputes. This would involve making an effort to resurrect the units through better management wherever possible.
• Avoiding delays: The average number of days it takes to resolve a case has increased to 679 in H1FY23 from 230 in FY18. The proposed changes aim to address inter-creditor disputes, which have been identified as the leading cause of delays.

IBC seen as a game-changer

• The IBC has proven to be a deterrent to many unscrupulous borrowers while also providing banks with tools to be reasonably confident in recovering NPAs.
• Fear of losing control of the company pushes debtors to pay their bills.
• Until September 2022, 23,417 applications for the initiation of the Corporate Insolvency Resolution Process (CIRP) were resolved before admission, with an underlying default amount of $7.31 trillion.
• The code indirectly provides an exit route by terminating commercially unviable units.

Source: https://www.livemint.com/news/india/why-bankruptcy-regime-in-india-needs-finetuning-11672160266596.html