India Advances Green Hydrogen to Lead Global Energy Transition

India is pushing to become a global center for green hydrogen innovation as part of its commitment to achieve net-zero emissions by 2070. Speaking at the Green Hydrogen R&D Conference in New Delhi, Union Minister Shripad Yesso Naik called on scientists, startups, and industries to work together to develop breakthrough technologies and strengthen India’s position in the global clean energy market.

The National Green Hydrogen Mission, launched last year, aims to support over 200 research projects and create a robust ecosystem with funding, testing facilities, and incubation programs. A call for proposals for hydrogen startups was also announced to encourage innovation and reduce barriers to entry, while promoting disruptive technologies.

The conference, attended by more than 1,300 participants, featured discussions on production methods, storage, transportation, safety, and infrastructure. Long-term research and commercialization strategies were emphasized, along with talent development to scale hydrogen technologies effectively.

Green hydrogen is seen not only as a key to reducing emissions but also as a driver of economic growth. It can power sectors like steel, cement, fertilizer, mobility, and shipping, while reducing import dependence and creating jobs. Government and industry leaders highlighted the importance of standards, mentoring, and partnerships to ensure India’s leadership in the global energy transition.

The National Green Hydrogen Mission's 200+ research projects, funding infrastructure, testing facilities and startup incubation architecture reflects appropriate institutional support for early-stage industry development. Green hydrogen commercialisation depends on technology maturation, cost reduction, standards development and infrastructure build - no single dimension can be neglected.

The industrial-decarbonisation demand pull (steel, cement, fertiliser, mobility, shipping) is analytically important. Green hydrogen without downstream off-take demand becomes stranded investment; hard-to-abate industrial applications that lack alternative decarbonisation pathways create the demand foundation that supply-side investment requires. India's steel and fertiliser sectors are particularly consequential given their scale.

For hydrogen developers, equipment manufacturers, off-take industries, financial institutions and technology providers active in Indian green-hydrogen investment, Cognitud's energy transition, climate action and market intelligence teams help clients evaluate Green-Hydrogen-Mission-linked opportunities, structure long-term commercial arrangements aligned with production-and-off-take integration, and prepare disclosures aligned with BRSR, ISSB and jurisdictional green-hydrogen frameworks.