Government approves three pilot projects to use hydrogen energy in steel production under National Green Hydrogen mission

Under the National Green Hydrogen Mission, the Union Government has approved three pilot projects focused on integrating hydrogen into steel production.

Earlier, the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE) had issued guidelines for carrying out pilot projects in the steel sector as part of the mission.

According to the Ministry of new and renewable energy, the scheme aims to identify and advance technologies that can incorporate green hydrogen into steelmaking through pilot initiatives.

These projects seek to demonstrate the safe and efficient use of hydrogen-based processes for steel production, validating their technical feasibility, assessing performance, and evaluating economic viability, all with the goal of achieving low-carbon steel production.

Proposals were invited for three areas- producing Direct Reduced Iron (DRI) using 100% hydrogen in a vertical shaft, reducing coal and coke usage in blast furnaces through hydrogen integration, and injecting hydrogen into vertical shaft-based DRI production units.

Following a thorough evaluation of the proposals received, the MNRE has sanctioned three pilot projects in the steel sector- matrix Gas and Renewables Ltd, partnering with Gensol Engineering Ltd, IIT Bhubaneswar, and Metsol AB, Sweden, will establish a 50 ton-per-day (TPD) pilot plant; simplex Castings Ltd, in collaboration with BSBK Pvt. Ltd., Ten Eight Investment, and IIT Bhilai, will set up a 40 TPD pilot plant; and Steel Authority of India Ltd (SAIL) in Ranchi will lead the largest project with a capacity of 3,200 TPD.

The government has allocated Rs. 347 crore in financial support for these projects, which are expected to be commissioned within the next three years, setting the stage for scaling up green hydrogen technologies in India’s steel industry.

Launched on January 4, 2023, with a budget of Rs. 19,744 crore allocated through FY 2029-30, the National Green Hydrogen Mission aims to drive India’s clean energy transformation.

The mission is a step towards making India self-reliant (Aatmanirbhar) in energy, inspiring global clean energy initiatives, reducing carbon emissions, decreasing dependence on fossil fuel imports, and establishing India as a leader in green hydrogen technology and market development.