Amara Raja Power Systems will be setting up a green hydrogen fuelling station, the first such in the country, in Leh, Ladakh, for the National Thermal Power Corporation (NTPC).
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The pilot project will produce a minimum of 80kg/day of 99.97% pure hydrogen that will be compressed, stored and dispensed, the Amara Raja group entity said. NTPC, which has awarded the contract, plans to ply five hydrogen fuel cell buses in the region.
On successful completion, the project would usher in an era of emission free transport in and around Leh and place India in a group of select countries to take the lead in green mobility space.
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The project value is ₹41 crore and Amara Raja will operate and maintain the fuelling station for three years. On the cost of fuel, sources in the company said it cannot be commented on as of now.
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 thus will leave no carbon footprint. The project will be set up in Leh’s extreme conditions – at a height of 3,600 metres above sea level with a temperature variation of minus 14 degrees to plus 20 degrees Celsius, Amara Raja Power Systems said on Monday.
A part of the National Hydrogen Energy Mission, this will be a precursor to large-scale green hydrogen mobility and storage projects and useful for studying and deploying fuelling stations across the country.
“We have been in the power systems and energy storage business for three decades... honoured to continue to serve NTPC as a trusted contractor,” said Amara Raja executive director Vikramadithya Gourineni.
Noting that the challenging project would reaffirm the group’s EPC expertise, business head of the EPC division Dwarakanadha Reddy said, “We are excited about being the first to enter the green hydrogen infrastructure space.”