Shimla: India's first multi-purpose green hydrogen pilot project at the 1,500 MW Nathpa Jhakri Hydro Power Station (NJHPS) in Himachal Pradesh's Jhakri was inaugurated on Wednesday, according to Satluj Jal Vidyut Nigam (SJVN) officials.

SJVN Chairman and Managing Director Geeta Kapur inaugurated a 20Nm3/hr electrolyzer and 25kW fuel cell capacity-based green hydrogen pilot project, a statement issued here said.

The project is the nation's first multi-purpose (combined heat and power) green hydrogen generation plant with the capability to cater to the high-velocity oxygen fuel (HVOF) coating facility of NJHPS to meet its combustion fuel requirements, in addition to generating electricity through its 25 kW capacity fuel cell.

It will produce hydrogen gas by splitting hydrogen and oxygen from water with the help of an alkaline electrolyzer of 20 Nm3/hr capacity by utilising renewable energy supplied from the 1.31 MW solar power plant of SJVN located in Wadhal, Himachal Pradesh.

The pilot project is set to produce 14 kg of green hydrogen daily during eight hours of operation, which will be stored in six storage tanks. The green hydrogen will be used for HVOF coating of turbine underwater parts in addition to generating electricity through its 25 kW fuel cell, officials said.

"Aligned with the National Green Hydrogen Mission of the Government of India, SJVN's Green Hydrogen Pilot Project is poised to accelerate the development of green hydrogen production infrastructure in the power sector, establishing green hydrogen as a clean energy source," said Kapur.

Kapur also inaugurated the first-of-kind centralised operation of 1,500 MW of NJHPS and 412 MW of Rampur Hydro Power Station (RHPS) by remotely operating Unit-2 of RHPS from the NJHPS control room at Jhakri.