Green hydrogen has barely crossed the threshold between being the next big thing in energy and being a remotely viable business. But that's not stopping billionaires from wanting in on the probable riches in producing the world's lightest element by splitting water into hydrogen and oxygen. That is done using clean energy, through a process called electrolysis. There are the usual suspects—Indian business tycoons Mukesh Ambani and Gautam Adani. But there are also names that you wouldn't immediately associate with green hydrogen, such as Adar Poonawalla—of vaccine maker Serum Institute of India—who has backed a startup in the space. Then there's one of India's biggest business groups—the Munjals-owned Hero Group. After a middling run as a solar and wind power producer, Hero Future Energies now wants to be taken seriously as a green hydrogen producer, Shruti writes in her story today. To that end, it has joined hands with US-based Ohmium International. Hero will provide clean electricity to make hydrogen using the electrolysers Ohmium manufactures in a 500 megawatt facility in Bengaluru. Ohmium wants to quadruple this capacity by December 2023. The plan seems great on paper. But given the nature of hydrogen, it can't be made in one or two megafactories and transported around the country. It has to be produced in small units close to where the customers are. And some of these key customers—such as India's state-owned refineries—want to make their own green hydrogen, helped in no small measure by favourable government policies. India wants to produce green hydrogen at $1 per kilogram by 2030—roughly 75% cheaper than it is today. Finally, Hero has to deal with the baggage Ohmium comes with. The latter's investors and management are drawn from two companies—SunEdison and Bloom Energy—with chequered track records. By assessing Hero's green hydrogen ambitions, The MMS offers a necessary peek into a sector that will be in the news more and more in the coming years Soon
