One mln hydrogen fuelled vehicles will be on Indian roads by 2020

New Delhi, Aug 17 (UNI) The Government has set up a National Hydrogen Energy Road Map (NHERM) for development of hydrogen energy in India, which has been prepared under the guidance of the National Hydrogen Energy Board (NHEB), said the Minister of State for New and Renewable Energy Vilas Muttemwar in a written reply in the Lok Sabha today.

He said the NHERM has identified research, development, demonstration and other efforts required for bridging the technological gaps in different areas of hydrogen energy, including its production, storage, transportation, delivery, applications, safety, codes and standards, and capacity building for the period upto 2020.

He said the NHERM has also recommended two major initiatives for use of hydrogen as a fuel in vehicles and for power generation. The road map has envisaged that about one million hydrogen fuelled vehicles would be on the Indian roads by 2020.

He said as the technology for use of hydrogen as a fuel in vehicles is still in the research and development phase, there is no plan at present to provide subsidy for introduction of hydrogen as a fuel in the vehicles.

The ministry of New and Renewable Energy has been supporting a broad based research, development and demonstration programme on different aspects of hydrogen technologies for over two decades and holding regular interactions with various stakeholders for promotion of hydrogen energy in the country, he added.

UNI