India Hydrogen Alliance (IH2A) and the Government of Kerala have 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 a 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 after a consultation meeting between the government, industry and funding agencies.
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.”
The project focuses 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 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.”
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 endeavour.”
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 KGH2 framework is tended to help the Government of Kerala attract interested public and private parties, as well as funding agencies, leading to structuring a KGH2 public-private project consortia.