The Net Zero commitment and climate change are accelerating the shift from fossil fuels to alternatives like clean hydrogen. Hydrogen is not a direct substitute to coal, oil and natural gas but parts of the economy can be decarbonized with the help of clean hydrogen.
India has become the fifth largest economy in the world after US, EU, China, Japan. India's starting position in the race to reach ‘Net-Zero’ is not comparable to the other four large economies. It will need to invest USD 12.7 trillion to reach net zero emission by 2050.
As of now, coal accounts for 44% of India's major energy sources and 70% of its power generation. The power sector is a significant contributor to greenhouse gas emissions that have far-reaching effects on the environment and health. As one of the leading CO2 emitters, coal-based power generation causes significant environmental damage. In addition, greenhouse traps heat causing climate change and contributing to air pollution and smog. India is expected to be the fastest growing large economy in this decade, driving increased energy demand. India's Prime Minister during his COP26 address in Glasgow, has demonstrated India's commitment with a five-point sustainability agenda, Panchamrit.
1. India will take its non-fossil energy capacity to 500 GW by 2030
2. India will meet 50% of its energy requirements from renewable energy by 2030.
3. India will reduce the total projected carbon emissions by one billion tonnes from now till 2030.
4. By 2030, India will reduce the carbon intensity of its economy by more than 45%.
5. By the year 2070, India will achieve the target of Net Zero.
In line with the sustainability goals ,and the global trend for developing and creating the fundamental hydrogen eco system and hydrogen economy, India has launched the ambitious Green Hydrogen Mission as hydrogen is the prospective key element to unlock a carbon free future in our global economy. To support the development and deployment of infrastructure the regulatory framework support is inevitable and policies and incentivization , providing subsidy is part of government support to build the hydrogen economy. According to report by IRENA (International Renewable Energy Agency), the countries that are way ahead in developing policy initiatives, technology and export facilities to promote clean hydrogen value chain are China, European Union and India. Other countries who have detailed road map and set aggressive goals are France, Germany and the Netherlands - and Australia, Chile, Japan and the U.K., USA. All of these are needed if the world is to decarbonize sectors like steelmaking, shipping and road haulage. The climate change agenda globally has conceptualised the Environmental Social Governance trend. With the SDG goals and Net Zero commitment by 2070, companies are adopting cost-effective, measurable Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) solutions to meet global decarbonisation goals. With the use of renewable energy sources, companies are consciously transitioning from carbon-intensive to carbon-neutral technology. In the financial community Environmental, social, and governance (ESG) investing is rapidly becoming one of the most visible and durable megatrends. ESG refers to corporate activities that would maintain or enhance the ability of a company to create value over the long-term. Apart from Profit maximization, value creation is being emphasized as utmost important. It includes both financial and non-financial aspects of a business, such as environment, human capital, social capital, innovation, leadership, and governance.
This global ESG trend has the potential to boost the hydrogen economy. The paper is based on literature review and latest articles and news about the changing scenario in ESG and the Green Hydrogen landscape. Effort has been made to find out the corelation of the rising ESG trend to the evolving Green Hydrogen landscape. From the findings it is inferred that the role of corporate in integrating ESG in their business strategy will help the green hydrogen eco system to evolve. So that development of infrastructure, adoption of technology and implementation is planned to reach the target set for green hydrogen by 2030 .India has set a target of producing 10% of its hydrogen from renewable energy sources by 2022 and 25% by 2030. India is all set for “quantum leap” to energy independence by 2047, according to PM Narendra Modi, with green hydrogen playing a key role in achieving this goal .To meet this target ESG compliance by corporates is a must and this will further give a boost to the adaptation of Green Hydrogen across the value chain.
