Amara Raja bags contract from NTPC to set up green hydrogen fuelling station in Leh

Mumbai: Amara Raja Power Systems, a part of the USD 1.3 billion Amara Raja group, has bagged a contract from NTPC to set up India's first green hydrogen fuelling station in Leh. The pilot project is being set up in Leh's extreme conditions at a height of 3,600 meters above sea level, Amara Raja Power Systems said in a release on Monday.

This is in line with the government's vision of achieving net-zero carbon emission by 2070.

A part of the National Hydrogen Energy Mission, this would be a precursor to large-scale green hydrogen mobility and storage projects, and would be useful for studying and deploying multiple fuelling stations across the country, it said.

The completion of the project would usher in a new era of emission-free transport in and around Leh, it said, adding India would be among few countries to take a lead in this green mobility space.

To begin with, NTPC plans to ply five hydrogen fuel cell buses in the region, the company said.

"The potential for hydrogen as an energy source of the future is substantial and projects such as these are critical to showcase this," said Vikramadithya Gourineni, Executive Director at Amara Raja.

According to the company, green hydrogen will be produced by splitting water into hydrogen and oxygen, using an electrolysis process powered by electricity generated by renewable energy sources.

The hydrogen produced in this manner will leave no carbon footprint.

The pilot project will produce a minimum of 80kg/day of 99.97 per cent pure hydrogen which will be compressed, stored and dispensed, it said.

"This challenging project will reaffirm our EPC expertise, and we are very excited about being the first to enter the green hydrogen infrastructure space," Dwarakanadha Reddy, Business Head of the EPC division at Amara Raja said.