MUMB AI
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L&T Electrolysers Ltd and Matrix Gas and Renewables Ltd have been awarded subsidies under New Delhi’s flagship green hydrogen promotion scheme following a last-minute withdrawal by Jindal India Ltd, a BC Jindal Group company, said one person familiar with the development.
The decision was taken Thursday after Jindal India missed the deadline of 3 February to furnish the bank guarantees required to formally sign up for the scheme, this person said, asking not to be named.
The incentives are part of the ₹17,490-crore Strategic Interventions for Green Hydrogen Transition (Sight) scheme, which grants subsidies to companies for setting up electrolyser manufacturing plants in India.
Jindal India backed out of the scheme after disagreements with its overseas technology partner, according to the person mentioned above.
Jindal India did not immediately reply to emailed queries.
L&T Electrolysers has been awarded maximum incentives of ₹444 crore to set up 300 megawatts of annual electrolyser manufacturing capacity. The company had earlier won a lower allocation of 63 MW against its application of 300 MW. L&T received the higher allocation following the withdrawal of Jindal India.
Matrix has been awarded incentives of ₹93 crore to set up 63 MW of annual electrolyser manufacturing capacity.
The scheme falls under the purview of the ministry of new and renewable energy (MNRE) and is managed by Solar Energy Corporation of India (Seci).
MNRE and Seci did not immediately reply to queries. L&T and Matrix could not immediately be reached for a comment.
Jindal India had applied for incentives to set up 300 MW of annual electrolyser manufacturing capacity and was granted a maximum subsidy of ₹444 crore.
It was one of eight companies chosen by the government in January, out of 21 applicants, to set up electrolyser manufacturing units in India as part of the first tranche of the scheme.
The other companies are: Reliance Electrolyser Manufacturing Ltd, Ohmium Operations, John Cockerill Greenko Hydrogen Solutions, Adani New Industries Ltd, Homihydrogen Private Ltd, and Advait Infratech Ltd.
The second tranche of the scheme is being prepared.
“The recent measures by the Indian government to reallocate resources towards green hydrogen electrolyzer manufacturing suggest a growing commitment to developing domestic production capacity in this emerging clean energy sector,” said Saurabh Agarwal, Partner, EY.
“This initiative, if successful, could contribute significantly to India’s energy independence and self-sufficiency goals,” he said.
Of the eight companies chosen for the Sight scheme, two are to set up about 200 MW of cumulative annual electrolyser manufacturing capacity using indigenously developed technology. Six companies, including Jindal India, were chosen to install a cumulative 1,200 MW of electrolyser capacity using any technology stack.
The Sight scheme is aimed at promoting domestic production of green hydrogen and electrolysers, and is part of the government’s National Green Hydrogen Mission.
An electrolyser uses electricity to split water into elemental oxygen and hydrogen. Hydrogen can then be used as a non-polluting fuel to replace fossil fuels.
In 2022, Jindal India Solar Energy, another BC Jindal group company, had pulled out of a government scheme to promote clean energy.
The company had also backed out of a production-linked incentive scheme for vertically integrated high-efficiency solar modules in 2022, and its capacity was then awarded to units of Reliance Industries and Adani group.