The schemes are part of the ?19,477 crore National
Green Hydrogen Mission.
The Budgetary outlay for projects under the Steel
Ministry willbe ?455 crore till a period of 2029-30.
The Steel Ministry will incentivise the push for the
use of hydrogen in Direct Reduced Iron-making process; use of Hydrogen in blast
furnace; and substitution of fossil fuels with Green Hydrogen in a gradual
manner.
The scheme will
also support pilot projects involving any other innovative use of hydrogen for
reducing carbon emissions in iron and steel production, it was said in a
statement.
The scheme envisages that considering the higher costs
of green hydrogen at present, steel plants could begin by blending a small
percentage of green hydrogen in their processes, and increasing the blending
proportion progressively, with improvement in cost-economics and advancement of
technology.
The guidelines also note that upcoming steel plants
should be capable of operating with green hydrogen, thus ensuring that these
plants are able to participate in future global low-carbon steel markets. The scheme will also consider greenfield
projects aiming at 100 per cent green steel.
Incidentally, the Ministry of Ports, Shipping and
Waterways (MoPSW) has also come up with similar guidelines whereby it will
promote use of green hydrogen to replace fossil fuels. There is a Budget outlay
of ?115 crore til FY26.
Two areas have been identified as thrust areas under
the pilot projects. These are retrofitting of existing ships so as to enable
them to run on Green Hydrogen or its derivatives; and development of bunkering
and refuelling facilities in ports on international shipping lanes for fuels
based on Green Hydrogen.
The use of Green Hydrogen and its derivatives in the
shipping sector, through the proposed pilot projects, will lead to the
development of necessary infrastructure including refuelling stations, storage,
and distribution networks, resulting in the establishment of an ecosystem in
the shipping sector.
The utilization of
green hydrogen in the shipping industry is expected to increase over the years,
with the expected reduction in its production cost, a statement from the
Ministry said.