Government to develop green fuel powered two wheelers

Government to develop green fuel powered two wheelers

3881. SHRI CHANDRA PRAKASH JOSHI

Will the Minister of PETROLEUM AND NATURAL GAS be pleased to state:

(a) whether there is any proposal under consideration of the Government to develop green fuel powered two wheelers in future and if so, the details thereof;

(b) whether the Indian Oil Research and Development Center has developed the country’s first hydrogen fuel cell powered two wheelers and if so, the details thereof;

(c) the efforts being made by the Government to promote green fuel across the country; and

(d) whether the Government proposes to increase the number of hydrogen refueling stations across the country and if so, the details thereof?

(a): Development of automobiles is done by automobile manufacturers. However, the Government has introduced Production Linked Incentive (PLI) Scheme for Automobile and Auto components under which incentives are applicable on eligible sales of greener fuel powered two wheelers.

(b):    No, Sir.

(c): The Government is promoting biofuels with the broader objectives of reducing import dependency, generating employment, providing better remuneration to farmers, for associated environmental benefits, promoting better waste management practices, etc. To promote the use of biofuels across the country various programmes such as Ethanol Blended Petrol (EBP) Programme, wherein  Oil  Marketing Companies (OMCs) sell petrol blended with ethanol; Biodiesel blending programme wherein biodiesel is blended with diesel; and Sustainable Alternative towards Affordable Transportation (SATAT) initiative wherein Compressed Bio Gas (CBG) is marketed along with Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) have been taken up.

 

The Government has also taken various initiatives for adoption of electric mobility in the country. The Government has notified Phase-II of “Faster Adoption and Manufacturing of Hybrid and Electric vehicles in India (FAME INDIA) Scheme” for a period of five years commencing from 01st April, 2019 with a total budgetary support of Rs. 10,000 crores. The Government also approved  a  PLI Scheme for manufacturing of Advanced Chemistry Cell (ACC) in the country in order to bring down prices of the ACC battery. Another PLI Scheme for Automobile and Auto Components has been approved under which incentives are applicable on eligible sales of EVs, Hydrogen Fuel Cell vehicles and Flex Fuel Engines.

Further, the Government has notified the use of hydrogen as automotive fuel for fuel cell vehicles on 16th September, 2016. The specifications of Hydrogen as a reference fuel for Internal Combustion Engine BS IV vehicles have also been notified on 16th December, 2022.

The Government has recently approved the National Green Hydrogen Mission. The overarching objective of the Mission is to make India the global hub for production, usage and export of green hydrogen and its derivatives. Various Research & Development (R&D) activities on hydrogen are being undertaken by Oil and Gas Public Sector Undertakings (OGPSUs). OGPSUs have also formed a Hydrogen Corpus Fund to support R&D on various facets of hydrogen including its application as an automotive fuel. R&D projects have been undertaken by OGPSUs to use green hydrogen for fuel cell based mobility. OGPSUs have also undertaken pilot projects for production of green hydrogen with a production capacity of 2.5 Kilo Tonnes Per Annum (KTPA). Blending of green hydrogen has started with natural gas for supplying to the township of Oil India Limited at Jorhat. Trial  run of Hydrogen Fuel Cell buses on tourist routes including Vadodara to Kevadiya, New Delhi to Agra and Jorhat to Kaziranga have started.

(d): Indian Oil Corporation Ltd (IOCL) has set up a hydrogen dispensing station at IOC R&D Faridabad. Further, IOCL has also commissioned a commercial hydrogen dispensing station at Gujarat Refinery to support fuel cell mobility trial applications.

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