VISAKHAPATNAM: The first phase of the Green Energy Park Project (green hydrogen hub) of the National Thermal Power Corporation at Pudimadaka in Anakapalli district, about 40km from Visakhapatnam, will be completed by end of 2026. The total project cost is estimated to be ₹1.1 lakh crore.
Talking to the media, the business unit head of NTPC’s Simhadri super thermal power station, Sanjay Kumar Sinha, said NTPC is expected to spend ₹1.1 lakh crore in a phased manner to set up the green hydrogen hub to produce energy from green hydrogen. The park will come up at Pudimadaka, where the AP Industrial Investment Corporation (APIIC) had allotted 1,200 acres of land to NTPC. The park project will be completed by 2030, he added.
NTPC has signed an MoU with the AP government in this regard at the global investor's summit in the first week of March.
The project had been shelved in 2018 as the central government had decided to reduce coal imports. The green energy project has been found viable following a visit by top officials from Fortescue Future Industries (FFI), the green energy arm of Fortescue Group of Australia to Pudimadaka in Sept 2022.
The Australian firm specialises in the production of green hydrogen with 100 per cent renewable sources and operates in over 25 countries.
NTPC along with SMEC has conceptualized creation of a green hydrogen hub at Pudimadaka, so as to develop an ecosystem for hydrogen energy, including the production of hydrogen-related components and green hydrogen. The project is divided into industrial and Hydrogen areas.
The industrial area covers 600 acres and will feature pre-engineered buildings/sheds with solar rooftop, industrial spaces and a central business district. It will also host manufacturing facilities for new energy technologies such as electrolysers, fuel cells, batteries, solar wafer, solar modules, wind turbine equipment and carbon capture systems.
The hydrogen area covers 600 acres and will be home to one of India's largest green hydrogen production facilities with a capacity of 1,500 TPD. This facility will be operated in partnership/ collaboration with other global companies and will produce green hydrogen / derivatives, including 1300 TPD of green ammonia and 1,200 TPD of green methanol, primarily for the South Asian export market.
