The Ministry of New & Renewable Energy (MNRE) has invited proposals to set up  Centers of Excellence (CoE) under the National Green Hydrogen Mission (NGHM)’s Research and Development (R&D) program.

The applications must be submitted by December 19, 2024.

The selected entities would be eligible for financial support of up to 50% of the project cost. These centers aim to accelerate the transition to a carbon-neutral economy by fostering advancements in green hydrogen production, storage, and utilization. They will also serve as hubs for cutting-edge research, skill development, information dissemination, and industry collaboration.

The call for proposals is to develop and establish CoEs as hubs for green hydrogen ecosystems in the country. The selected applicants will identify novel solutions for green hydrogen production, storage, and transportation of green hydrogen and its derivatives.  The CoEs will act as accelerators to support the scaling up of technologies that have already reached a certain level of development.

Under the R&D program, academic institutions, R&D installations, government institutions, public sector undertakings, and private research institutions can submit project proposals for financial support. Industries with experience and infrastructure can also partner with these entities.

The grantee institutions will be responsible for protecting the intellectual property rights generated by the CoEs’ work, as per the provisions in the R&D .

NGHM was launched in 2023 with an outlay of ₹197.44 billion (~$2.3 billion) to make India a global hub for producing, using, and exporting green hydrogen and its derivatives. The mission has allocated ₹4 billion (~$47.5 million) for research activities.

In October, MNRE approved three pilot projects to use hydrogen in steel production under the National Green Hydrogen Mission. The government will provide ₹3.47 billion (~$41.28 million) as financial support for these pilot projects, which will likely be commissioned in the next three years.