World Hydrogen Technologies Convention 2009

Hydrogen is said to hold the answer in providing clean, environment friendly and reliable energy to various sectors of the industry. The foremost being the automobile industry which has been experimenting with hydrogen powered vehicles for some time now. Hydrogen can be used as a fuel to power electric drives for stationary applications as well as vehicles and that is why its viability is being looked at on a global scale.

In India, the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy is the nodal Ministry to push the infrastructure forward on this account. The Ministry has been instrumental in establishing a wide research, development and demonstration program of hydrogen energy and fuel cell technology for over two decades now and in recent years the Ministry has been instrumental in ushering companies to experiment with hydrogen based fuel systems for their products.

Despite the headway the companies have made in the realm of hydrogen energy, the fact that remains are issues such as safety, viability and of course conservation for the environment. Innovative methods to produce hydrogen are the need of the hour and that is what some of the delegates had to share.

Speaking about what the government should do to help the cause, Dr. A. P. J. Abdul Kalam, Former President of India said, "The government should provide facilities to the small time entrepreneurs at cheaper costs, reduction in excise duty, relaxation in tax and help in getting hydrogen technology patent, so that the world can see what India is and contribute in the hydrogen technology".

To this, Dr. Farooq Abdullah, Honourable Minister of New and Renewable Energy added, "India is actively involved from past two decades to develop this technology and hence, public private partnership involvement is crucial in the development of hydrogen based technology".

No doubt, the government will have to play their role in propagating this technology and that will entail an effort of developing the infrastructure to collect hydrogen. It's a mammoth task, however the fact that the government and the industry is on the same page is what is truly welcome. Even oil majors such as Indian Oil have stepped forward to the cause of hydrogen.

Mr. Sarthak Behuria, Chairman, Indian Oil Corporation, stated, "The hydrogen technology is often compared with the marathon because we do not usually see the finish line. The global hydrocarbon community realizes the urgency to tame newer and greener fuel solutions. Hydrogen holds a promising potential".

At the end of the day, if the infrastructure exists and there is a feasible amount of hydrogen in the market for the auto sector to take seriously and install their vehicles with the necessary technology, then a major achievement will definitely take place. India is growing and with this growth Indian companies are also becoming aggressive to achieve at global standards. Dr. Pawan Goenka, Vice-President SIAM and President-Automotive, Mahindra & Mahindra, said it best in his speech, "It is very heartening to see that both the Government and industry thought leaders have joined hands to work towards the development of hydrogen technology. Dr. Kalam's views would surely guide us in the right direction to develop this technology. I am sure Indian Oil Corporation & SIAM would play a vital role in converting this convention's agenda into reality".

The development of hydrogen technology is definitely a strong agenda here in India as well. With the government and Industry coming together to further this cause has instilled a lot of faith in the various shareholders. It is the technology of the future and that is what should dominate the thoughts of top decision makers.