Which Companies Manufacture Green Hydrogen in India?

The winds of change are sweeping across India's energy sector and are promising a clean and sustainable future.

Fuelling this transformation is a rising star - green hydrogen. Unlike its traditional counterpart, green hydrogen boasts an eco-friendly production process, harnessing the power of renewable energy sources like solar and wind.

This innovation has captured the imagination of both the government and private investors, setting the stage for a potential green hydrogen revolution in India.

India's burgeoning green hydrogen market is still in its nascent stages. However, the seeds of ambition were firmly sown in January 2023 with the launch of the National Green Hydrogen Mission. This visionary initiative reflects India's two-pronged strategy: achieving energy independence and decarbonising critical sectors.

This clean-burning fuel holds immense potential to power various sectors, from transportation and industry to heating and electricity generation. While large-scale hydrogen extraction methods are still under development, green hydrogen offers a more immediate and sustainable pathway.

This has sent a ripple of excitement through the investment landscape, with a growing number of investors eyeing green hydrogen stocks as a promising avenue for future growth.

Here are the top stocks to add to your watchlist.

#1 Reliance Industries

First on the list is Reliance Industries.

Reliance Industries is a Fortune 500 company and the largest Indian private-sector corporation. It has evolved from being a textiles and polyester company to an integrated player across energy, materials, retail, entertainment, and digital services.

Reliance Industries is one of India's largest manufacturers of green hydrogen.

The company's green hydrogen is used for domestic consumption and global sales, contributing significantly to reducing carbon emissions.

Moreover, this company uses both green hydrogen and CO2 as raw materials to create a plan for developing new green chemicals, fertilisers, and e-fuels.

In line with its focus on green hydrogen, Reliance Industries, on 22 MAY 2024, signed an agreement with Norway's Nel ASA for sourcing technology to make electrolysers for green hydrogen production.

The agreement provides RIL with an exclusive license for Nel's alkaline electrolysers in India and also allows RIL to manufacture Nel's alkaline electrolysers for captive purposes globally.

Further, Reliance is building a Dhirubhai Ambani Green Energy Giga Complex over 5,000 acres in Jamnagar, Gujarat, India. Part of the complex are different giga factories, including an electrolyser manufacturing factory, for the production of green hydrogen.

The company had earlier said it is collaborating with Denmark's Stiesdal A/S for their HydroGen Electrolysers manufacturing in India.

Earlier this year, RIL was also allotted 300 megawatts (MW), of capacity under the government's production-linked incentive scheme (PLI) for electrolyser manufacturing.

Going forward, it plans to transition to green hydrogen production by 2025 and become net zero by 2035.

The company plans to invest Rs 750 billion (bn) over three years to set up its clean energy business.

It also plans to invest Rs 5 trillion (tn) in the next 10-15 years to set up a 100 GW renewable-energy power plant and green-hydrogen ecosystem development.

For more details, see the Reliance Industries company fact sheet and quarterly results.

#2 Adani Green Energy

Next on the list is Adani Green Energy.

The company is involved in renewable energy generation and ancillary activities. Adani Green Energy Ltd. develops, builds, owns, and operates solar and wind power projects, solar parks, hybrid power generation projects, etc.

Currently, Adani Green Energy is developing a 30 GW renewable energy plant on barren land at Khavda in Kutch of Gujarat over an area of 538 sq. km, after which it would become the planet's largest power plant regardless of the energy source.

The area of the project in Khavda is five times the size of Paris and almost as large as Mumbai.

The project at Khavda is a Hybrid renewable energy cluster where, during the morning hours, solar energy is generated and during the evening hours, wind generation is generated. It has an operationalised capacity of 2,000 MW solar energy.

Currently, the company largely exports from its existing solar module manufacturing capacity of 4 GW. Its solar modules and wind turbine manufacturing capacities are located at Mundra in Gujarat.

The company has long-term expertise in developing mega-scale renewable energy projects.

In the current financial year, the company would add 1 GW of wind turbine capacity, taking the overall wind turbine manufacturing capacity to 2.5 GW, and another 2.5 GW may be added by the end of the financial year 2027.

With this project, India is poised to avoid about 58 million tonnes of CO2 emissions annually.

Going forward, the company plans to invest about Rs 1.5 trillion (tn) by 2030.

For more details, see the Adani Green Energy company fact sheet and quarterly results.

#3 Adani Total Gas

Next on the list is Adani Total Gas.

The company is a joint venture between Adani Group and Total Energies.

While Adani Green Energy focuses on large-scale green hydrogen production, its sister company, Adani Total Gas (ATGL), is taking a different but equally crucial approach in the green hydrogen space: blending.

The company is pioneering green hydrogen blending projects in India. Their focus lies on seamlessly integrating green hydrogen with existing natural gas infrastructure.

For the same, the company in November 2023 launched a groundbreaking green hydrogen blending pilot project in Ahmedabad. This project aims to blend green hydrogen with natural gas supplied to over 4,000 residential and commercial customers.

Green hydrogen is produced using electrolysis of water with electricity generated by renewable energy. Hydrogen blending is less carbon-intensive than burning gas but has the same heating capabilities.

The project is expected to be commissioned by FY24-25, and the percentage of green hydrogen will be gradually increased in the blend to up to 8% or more, depending on regulatory approvals.

The Ahmedabad pilot project serves as a crucial first step. Upon successful completion, ATGL plans to gradually expand the supply of hydrogen-blended fuel to larger parts of the city and other areas under their license.

The company actively seeks collaboration with various stakeholders, including regulatory bodies. This collaborative approach aims to share learnings from the pilot project and contribute to developing a robust green hydrogen blending ecosystem in India.

Going forward, Adani Total Gas plans to maintain a leadership position in green hydrogen blending.

For more details, see the Adani Total Gas company fact sheet and quarterly results.

#4 L&T

Next on the list is L&T.

Semiconductors, 5G telecom, renewable energy, SpaceTech, metro rail, and defence. How many Indian companies have won orders in each of these segments recently? The only company is L&T.

The company is the most respected multinational conglomerate that operates in over 50 countries with unmatched capabilities in all its businesses, including construction, engineering, technology, and manufacturing.

The company, in March 2024, commissioned its first indigenously manufactured hydrogen electrolyser at the green hydrogen plant in Hazira, Gujarat.

This signifies L&T foray into domestic electrolyser manufacturing.

It is equipped with two stacks and an electrolyser processing unit ML-400 and offers exceptional flexibility and thermal stability.

Additionally, Larsen and Toubro's newly established entity, L&T Electrolysers, focuses on manufacturing pressurised alkaline electrolysers using technology from McPhy Energy in France.

The company plans to utilise its upcoming giga-scale Hazira facility to meet the increasing demand for green hydrogen while maximising product localisation through an enhanced local supply chain and automation for cost competitiveness.

This advancement significantly bolsters the company's offerings across the value chain, showcasing L&T as a global force in the clean energy space.

Back in August 2023, it had announced that along with IOC and ReNew formed a company called GH4India Private. Each company has a 33.3% stake in GH4India.

Together, they will invest up to US$ 4 bn in their green hydrogen businesses over the next three to five years.

Apart from this, the company is working on setting up the world's largest green hydrogen plant being built by a Saudi-based green hydrogen company - NEOM Green.

Going forward, L&T plans to expand its focus on green hydrogen projects in global markets, aiming to strengthen its presence in the sustainable energy sector.

For more details about the company, check out L&T's fact sheet and quarterly results.

#5 Adani Enterprises

Next on the list is Adani Enterprises.

Building upon its success in power, oil and gas, infrastructure, and airports, Adani Enterprises is now poised to make significant inroads into the green hydrogen sector.

Adani Enterprises through its wholly owned subsidiary Adani New Industries has spent US$ 2.5 billion (bn) so far in developing a backward integrated value chain for its green hydrogen project and is on track to implement the first phase of the project with an annual capacity of 1 million tons by FY27.

The aim is to increase the capacity to 3 million tons in the next ten years with an investment of US$ 50 bn.

The green hydrogen plant is coming up at Mundra in Gujarat.

The backward integration includes developing a fully integrated value chain across solar, wind, electrolysers, and allied equipment for the generation of green hydrogen and its associated sustainable derivatives.

Green hydrogen is one of the major thrust areas for the group, and it is spending massively on the production of supply chain products for the generation of green hydrogen such as solar-polysilicon, ingots, wafers, cell and module, and wind turbine generators.

Further, the company is committing to over US$ 50 bn over the next 10 years to build the world's largest green hydrogen ecosystem in India.

The massive investment will help Adani become a green hydrogen giant, globally and put India on the map as the cheapest producer of hydrogen.

For more details, see the Adani Enterprises company fact sheet and quarterly results.

#6 NTPC

Next on the list is NTPC.

NTPC is a key player in the power sector, producing and distributing large quantities of electricity to various utility providers.

The power giant is committed to the development of renewable energy in the country and its potential to decarbonise the energy sector.

The company in February 2024, announced plans to build the country's largest green hydrogen project in Andhra Pradesh.

Its subsidiary, NTPC Green Energy signed a land lease agreement with the Andhra Pradesh Industrial Infrastructure Corporation (APIIC), owned by the state government, to build a green hydrogen hub on 1,200 acres of land close to Pudimadaka.

NTPC is eyeing a capacity of 1,200 tonnes of green hydrogen per day.

Further, the company, in January 2024, signed an agreement with the government of Maharashtra for the development of green hydrogen and its derivatives, such as green ammonia and green methanol of up to 1 million tonne capacity per annum.

As per the statement, the agreement also includes the creation of pumped storage projects of 2 gigawatts (GW) and the development of renewable energy projects with or without storage of up to 5 GW in the state.

Furthermore, NTPC Ltd. and its renewable energy subsidiary, NGEL, have entered into non-binding memoranda of understanding (MoUs) with Rajasthan Rajya Vidyut Utpadan Nigam on 10 March 2024, aiming to enhance energy efficiency and significantly boost renewable energy production in Rajasthan.

The company has set a target of producing 150,000 tonnes of green hydrogen per year by 2030.

NTPC, which has around 3.4 GW of RE capacity throughout India, is targeting to have 60 GW by 2032. The company already has a project pipeline of 22 GW.

NTPC is also planning an initial public offering for its renewable energy subsidiary NTPC Green Energy Ltd (NGEL) to procure funds and to lay out some strategy initiatives.

For more details about the company, see the NTPC company fact sheet and quarterly results.

#7 Indian Oil Corporation

Next on the list is the Indian Oil Corporation (IOC).

A company that was primarily dependent on fossil fuels to generate revenue, IOC is now exploring the green hydrogen space.

The management believes that oil will continue to be a dominant fuel for the next few years, but they are preparing for a transition, which will involve a combination of green hydrogen and biofuels.

The company in April 2024, relaunched tenders for its maiden green hydrogen plant to be set up in Panipat.

The company has cancelled its initial tender for the same after it led to bidders approaching the Delhi High Court.

The cancelled tender had called for a 10-kilo tonnes per annum capacity unit to be set up on a build, own operate, and transfer basis at the state-owned oil marketing company's Panipat refinery and petrochemicals complex.

In the last tender, prospective bidders had flagged a conflict of interest on IOCL's part. This was owing to GH4India Pvt Ltd, IOCL's joint venture with infrastructure and engineering major Larsen & Toubro (L&T).

The revised tender has removed the controversial ROFR (right of first refusal) clause, which The Independent Green Hydrogen Producers Association (IGHPA) alleged was designed in favour of IOCL's JV company GH4 India.

The new tender demands a consortium or joint venture participating in the tender to have a maximum of three members, with each having a minimum 26% stake. The previous tender didn't mandate the minimum stake requirement.

It also plans to set up units at all its refineries as part of a Rs 2.4 tn green transition plan to achieve net zero carbon emission status by 2046.

The company aims to increase the share of green hydrogen in its overall hydrogen portfolio to 50% in the next 5-10 years and 100% by 2040.

IOC plans to use the green hydrogen it produces as a replacement for carbon-emitting fuels to process crude oil into value-added products such as petrol and diesel.

For more details, check out Indian Oil Corporation's financial factsheet and latest quarterly results.

#8 ONGC

Next on the list is Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC).

ONGC is India's largest crude oil and natural gas producer, accounting for roughly 70% of the country's domestic production.

Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC), a leading Indian energy company, is actively charting its course in the green hydrogen revolution.

Like IOC, ONGC is setting its sights on becoming a major green hydrogen producer.

They've announced ambitious plans to build two green ammonia plants, each with a capacity of 1 MTPA.

This translates to around 180 KTPA (Kilo Tonnes Per Annum) of green hydrogen production.

ONGC plans a phased rollout for their green hydrogen production facilities. The plants are expected to be operational by 2027, contributing significantly to India's green hydrogen targets.

Further, the company, on 23 January 2024, received approval from the Petroleum and Natural Gas Ministry for the formation of a subsidiary company for green energy and gas business.

The subsidiary will engage in businesses related to green hydrogen, hydrogen blending, renewable energy including solar, wind and hybrid, bio-fuels and bio-gas business and liquefied natural gas (LNG).

The proposed name of the company is 'ONGC Green' subject to the approval of the Ministry of Corporate Affairs.

The company has also stated that the board has accorded in-principle approval for the formation of a joint venture company either directly or through an affiliation with NTPC Green Energy Ltd, a wholly-owned subsidiary of NTPC.

Furthermore, In June 2022, ONGC announced a memorandum of understanding with renewables developer Greenko to jointly develop a 1.3 GW electrolyser facility supplying one million tonnes a year of green ammonia production.

The firm has also more recently floated plans for a one-million-tonnes-a-year renewable NH3 facility in the port city of Mangalore - although it is unclear whether this is being jointly developed with Greenko or is a separate project.

The company is planning to spend Rs 850 bn on developing two million tonnes of green ammonia annual production capacity by 2035.

For more details, see the ONGC company fact sheet and quarterly results.

#9 GAIL

Next on the list is GAIL.

GAIL (India) Ltd., the country's largest natural gas company, is at the forefront of India's green hydrogen revolution. They are not just talking about it; they are actively making it happen.

Gail is not waiting in the wings. They have established themselves as a frontrunner by successfully commissioning India's first green hydrogen plant in April 2024.

Located at their Vijaipur complex in Madhya Pradesh, this 10 MW (megawatt) plant produces around 4.3 tonnes of green hydrogen daily with a purity of 99.9%.

It uses electricity produced from renewable sources, such as solar energy, to split water to produce green hydrogen.

Besides sourcing renewable power through open access, GAIL is also setting up around 20 MW Solar power plants at Vijaipur (both ground-mounted and floating) to meet the requirement of green power for the 10 MW PEM Electrolyser.

While GAIL is blending hydrogen with natural gas on an experimental basis in Indore in its CGD (city gas distribution) network to test its success, it aims to escalate blending ratios after necessary approvals based on the test results.

Current regulations provide for blending only 5% hydrogen with natural gas. GAIL is conducting joint studies with Engineers India Limited and IIT Kanpur to further blend hydrogen with natural gas.

The company has already successfully implemented the blending of natural gas with green hydrogen, which it supplies to Aavantika Gas, one of GAIL's Joint Venture (JV) Companies with HPCL.

Apart from this, GAIL has entered into a MoU with Gujarat Alkalies and Chemicals to set up a 500 KLPD (kilo litre per day) bioethanol plant in Gujarat. The following is company's carbon transmission plan.

The company said it plans to invest Rs 260 bn in its renewable portfolio by 2030, which will take the renewable energy capacity to 3 GW, of which 10% of the portfolio will be hydrogen.

It also aims to produce 50,000 tonnes per annum of hydrogen by 2030.

For more details, see the GAIL company fact sheet and quarterly results.

#10 Adani Power

Next on the list is Adani Power.

Another subsidiary of the Adani group, Adani Power, is also on the list of green hydrogen companies stocked in India. The company is engaged in conserving biodiversity, water management, emission management, waste management, etc.

As part of decarbonisation efforts, Adani Power will use green ammonia along with conventional fuel coal to run the boiler of 330 MW at its Mundra plant in Gujarat.

The quantum of green ammonia will be up to 20% of the total fuel requirement.

Green ammonia, produced from green hydrogen, which in turn is produced through electrolysis using renewable energy, would be a feedstock for the boilers.

Ammonia does not contain carbon, and there will be no CO2 emission from its combustion, making it a long-term carbon-neutral alternative to fossil fuels.

Adani Power has partnered with IHI and Kowa-Japan for the pilot project and is examining its expansion to other APL units and stations as well. Kowa is active in energy-saving and energy-creating products, while IHI is a heavy industry company, which has ammonia firing technology.

For more details, see the Adani power company fact sheet and quarterly results.

#11 BPCL

Next on the list is Bharat Petroleum Corporation (BPCL).

Bharat Petroleum Corporation Limited (BPCL), a major Indian state-owned oil and gas company, is strategically approaching the green hydrogen landscape.

The company, on 14 February 2024, signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Cochin International Airport Ltd (CIAL) to establish an integrated green hydrogen plant and a fuelling station within the premises of Kochi Airport.

Under the agreement, BPCL would oversee the establishment of the green hydrogen plant and fuelling station at Kochi Airport, providing technology and managing operations. The initial plant output will be harnessed to power vehicles within the airport.

BPCL clarified that the initiative is a pilot project aimed at gaining experience in managing hydrogen for the automobile sector.

The oil marketing company added that the collaboration marks the establishment of India's first fuel station with green hydrogen in Southern India.

The MOU outlines plans for a 1,000 KW project at Kochi Airport, scheduled to be completed in 2025.

The company plans to become net zero by 2040 and is actively investing towards achieving the same.

The company plans to use Bhabha Atomic Research Centre's (BARC) alkaline electrolyser technology for it.

Using the alkaline electrolyser technology would bring down the costs by 20-30% from the current US$ 800 per KW.

For more details, see the BPCL company fact sheet and quarterly results.

#12 Oil India

Next on the list is Oil India.

Oil India is one of the largest exploration and production companies.

It is engaged in the business of exploration, development, production, and transportation of crude oil, natural gas, and LPG (liquified petroleum gas).

In 2022, the company commissioned its first green hydrogen plant with 99.99% purity. Oil India was the first in the country to pilot a green hydrogen plant with an installed capacity of 10 kg per day, which is located in Assam.

This plant produces green hydrogen from the electricity generated from the existing 500 kilowatts (KW) solar plant using a 100 kW Anion Exchange Membrane (AEM) Electrolyser array.

The company plans to invest Rs 250 bn in renewable energy to achieve net zero emissions by 2040.

For more details, see the Oil India company fact sheet and quarterly results.

#13 HPCL

Next on the list is Hindustan Petroleum (HPCL).

HPCL is a refining company and a marketer of petroleum products.

It is also engaged in the production of hydrocarbons and offers services to manage exploration and production (E&P) blocks.

HPCL successfully commissioned India's first pilot-scale SOE system in May 2024. This highly efficient technology boasts a 99.99% green hydrogen purity and offers a significant advantage over traditional alkaline electrolysers.

Notably, this SOE system doesn't rely on rare earth materials, slashing energy consumption by 20-30% compared to other electrolysers. This is considered to be a giant leap for the Green Hydrogen Mission.

They're setting up a 370-tonne-per-annum (TPA) green hydrogen plant at their Visakh refinery in Andhra Pradesh.

This project is part of a larger brownfield expansion plan and demonstrates HPCL's commitment to integrating green hydrogen into its operations. HPCL setting up a green hydrogen plant in Andhra.

HPCL boasts indigenously developed hydrogen pressure swing adsorption (H2 PSA) technology, a crucial step in purifying green hydrogen for various applications.

HPCL has ambitious plans to increase its green hydrogen production capacity to 16,870 tpa by 2027-28, signifying its long-term commitment towards green hydrogen.

For more details, check out the HPCL fact sheet and quarterly results.

#14 JSW Energy

Last on the list is JSW Energy.

JSW Energy, a leading Indian power company, is at the forefront of the green hydrogen revolution in India. The following are its energy products and services.

The company on 10 June announced that it is developing India's largest commercial-scale green hydrogen project.

This venture marks a significant milestone as the first in the nation to produce green steel.

The company has made significant progress in green hydrogen, including a seven-year agreement to supply 3,800 tons per annum to JSW Steel, along with green oxygen. Detailed engineering and equipment ordering are complete, with commissioning expected in Q4FY25.

Additionally, the company has been allocated a capacity of 6,800 TPA under the Strategic Interventions for Green Hydrogen Transition (SIGHT) program by SECI.

Further, JSW Neo Energy Ltd, an arm of JSW Energy Ltd, has received the Letter of Award (LoA) for setting up 6.5 ktpa (kilotonnes per annum) green hydrogen production facility in the auction conducted by Solar Energy Corp. of India (SECI) under the Strategic Interventions for Green Hydrogen Transition (SIGHT) Scheme.

The company has also signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with JSW Steel Ltd to supply an additional 85,000 to 90,000 TPA of green hydrogen and 720,000 TPA of green oxygen by 2030.

The capacity is to be commissioned within 36 months from the date of LoA.

Under the scheme, JSW will receive incentives for three years starting from the date of commencement of green hydrogen production.

For more details, see the JSW Energy company fact sheet and quarterly results.

Conclusion

The green hydrogen energy industry of India is aiming to achieve energy independence by 2047 and reach net zero emissions by 2070. To meet these ambitious targets, India is increasingly embracing green hydrogen energy.

The Indian government has unveiled a US$ 2 bn (Rs 160 bn) scheme to promote the production of green hydrogen fuel in the country.

Producers will receive incentives worth at least 10% of their costs to support the transition to renewable energy and reduce carbon emissions.

The government plans to offer incentives of at least Rs 30 per kg for green hydrogen production to cut manufacturing costs from the current Rs 300 per kg. The scheme will also allocate funds for manufacturing electrolysers that are essential for production.

Moreover, the Union Budget of FY 2024-25 has allocated a budget of Rs 6 bn, leading to a 102% increase from the previous budget of Rs 2.9 bn.

It is also essential to understand the challenges ahead in the industry. There are concerns about the high costs associated with producing green hydrogen due to the technology involved in the electrolysis process.

However, advancements in technology and increasing demand are expected to drive cost reductions over time, making it more affordable.

On the other hand, the infrastructure for storing, transporting and distributing green hydrogen remains underdeveloped.

Therefore, before considering investment in top green hydrogen stocks, conducting comprehensive research and staying updated with industry developments is crucial.

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