Thermax enters the green hydrogen market in partnership with Fortescue Future Industries
Fortescue Future Industries (FFI), an Australian green energy and technology company, has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Thermax Limited, a leading provider of energy and environment solutions in India, to explore green hydrogen projects, including new manufacturing facilities, in India. The two companies aim to jointly develop fully integrated green hydrogen projects for commercial and industrial customers in India. The production of green hydrogen at an industrial scale would be a major step forward in decarbonizing hard-to-abate industries in India, such as refineries, fertilizers, and steel.
The MoU also contemplates the potential collaboration between the two companies in the development of new manufacturing facilities to support green energy projects in India. The Performance Linked Incentive (PLI) scheme, under India's National Green Hydrogen Mission, could be leveraged for setting up any new manufacturing capacity. In addition to meeting domestic requirements, electrolysers and subsystems could potentially be used for export internationally.
FFI's experience in managing large-scale projects in its iron ore business provides the company with a strong platform to expand into manufacturing projects in green hydrogen. FFI is in the process of constructing a world-leading Green Energy Manufacturing Center in Gladstone, Queensland. The first phase of the project involves the construction of an electrolyser manufacturing facility, with a targeted initial output capacity of 2GW per annum. Thermax will bring its vast experience in EPC and supply chain to the collaboration.
Ashish Bhandari, MD & CEO of Thermax, expressed his thoughts on the collaboration, saying, "The collaboration with Fortescue Future Industries is perfectly timed to leverage the massive potential of the Indian green energy market that presents a multitude of opportunities, backed by favorable policies and incentives. Furthermore, the recent approval of the National Green Hydrogen Mission by India's Union Cabinet, which aims to increase domestic production of green hydrogen to 5 MMT per annum by 2030 and reduce fossil fuel imports by over Rs. 1 lakh crore, is a significant boost. With all these factors working in our favor, we are confident that our association will be successful."
FFI CEO Mark Hutchinson said, "FFI is on a mission to replace fossil fuels by producing green electrons from renewable energy and then converting these green electrons into green hydrogen. Through the National Green Hydrogen Mission, the Indian Government has shown that it is committed to developing its green hydrogen industry to help the country decarbonize. We are thrilled to be working with Thermax and believe that this MOU with a company of such high standing will help us in our mission to eliminate emissions."
Thermax Group, headquartered in Pune, India, is a leading conglomerate in the energy and environment space, offering integrated solutions in heating, cooling, power generation, water treatment and recycling, air pollution control, and chemicals, with a focus on ensuring clean air, clean energy, and clean water. The company has developed significant expertise in the areas of waste to energy, waste heat recovery, biomass, and renewable energy, including solar, wind, and bio-CNG, and has formed technology partnerships with global majors to enhance its business portfolios and decarbonize industrial operations.