Green hydrogen in shipping | India outlines funding to retrofit existing vessels and install ammonia fuelling at ports
India’s Ministry of New and Renewable Energy has unveiled details of its programme to support pilot projects for green hydrogen in shipping.
The country targets at least one port with green ammonia bunkering and refuelling facilities in 2025, as well as two ships retrofitted by the state-owned Shipping Corporation of India to run on green H2 or its derivatives in 2027.
As such, the programme is split into two tranches to meet these goals: 800 million rupees ($9.6m) for the retrofit of existing vessels to run on green hydrogen-based fuels, and 350 million rupees ($4.2m) to set up infrastructure to supply hydrogen-powered ships.
However, neither tranche of financial support will cover the cost of producing green H2.
The government plans to support projects to retrofit “an existing ocean-going vessel” with an electronic fuel-injection system with a propulsion system running on green ammonia or methanol, as well as pilots retrofitting existing ships without electronic fuel-injection systems to run on any green hydrogen-based fuel.
It also intends to fund projects to retrofit or develop a vessel for inland waterways or coastal operations with Indian-designed propulsion systems using green methanol, ammonia, or hydrogen fuel cells.
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The retrofitting scheme will be managed by the Shipping Corporation of India, which will identify suitable ships based on size, route and existing technology, before publishing a call for proposals for delivery before the end of 2027.
Meanwhile, the government will fund a pilot to build bunkering and refuelling facilities at a minimum of one port on an international shipping route by the end of 2025.
However, an agency to manage this funding is yet to be confirmed by the Ministry of Ports, Shipping and Waterways.
