Engineering and construction major Larsen & Toubro (L&T) signed an agreement with the Indian Institute of Technology Bombay to jointly pursue research and development work in the Green Hydrogen value chain, the company said in a release on Tuesday (26 April).
Both the institutions have joined hands to contribute towards development of the Green Hydrogen industry in India and to develop next-generation technology in this emerging field.
“L&T’s engineering expertise, product scale-up and commercialisation know-how and IIT Bombay’s cutting-edge research in hydrogen technologies will help this partnership accomplish its goal,” the company said.
Commenting on the occasion, S N Subrahmanyan, CEO & MD, L&T said, “L&T has always been in the forefront to drive technological advancements and indigenisation in India across sectors. We are positioning to drive Green Hydrogen economy in India together with our partners.”
“Our partners and clients are also looking forward to leveraging our capability to reduce costs and industrialise Green Hydrogen. This collaboration with IIT Bombay and its world-class technologists will support the cause of developing indigenous globally competitive technologies and nudge India towards AatmaNirbhar in Green Hydrogen technology,” Subrahmanyan added.
Speaking on the collaboration, Professor Subhasis Chaudhuri, Director, IIT Bombay said, “Given the urgency of the climate crisis and India’s own ambitious target of becoming net zero by 2070, transition from fossil fuel to Green Hydrogen will play a key role in this goal. India’s National Hydrogen Mission is a step in the right direction, and I am confident that our partnership with L&T will result in scalable and cost-effective solutions”.
“IIT Bombay’s endeavour is to contribute significantly to challenges of national importance, and our association with L&T to develop technologies for Green Hydrogen that can make India self-reliant in this space, is one such example,” Chaudhuri added.
Technology plays a central role in the growth of an emerging industry like Green Hydrogen. Research and Development in areas to improve energy efficiency, reliability and reducing equipment cost is crucial to improve affordability and hence, scaled adoption of Green Hydrogen in India is the need of the hour, the release said.
“Recognising this, L&T as an industrial partner is collaborating with IIT Bombay to support development of Indian R&D ecosystem and technology leadership for the sector,” it added.
The Central Government in February this year notified the Green Hydrogen policy aimed at boosting production of Green Hydrogen and Green Ammonia to help the nation become a global hub for the environmentally friendly version of the molecule.
For countries like India, with its ever-increasing oil and gas import bill, Green Hydrogen will help provide crucial energy security by reducing the overall dependence on imported fossil fuels, the release said.