Up to 70 hydrogen-powered vehicles could be deployed across India after the country's Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE) awarded US$ 43 million in funding to 21 pilot projects.

The programme is intended to assess the technical and economic viability of hydrogen-powered transport through the deployment of 27 buses and 43 trucks across 12 consortium-led projects covering 21 freight corridors and public transport routes.

The pilot projects will evaluate both hydrogen fuel cell and hydrogen internal combustion engine (ICE) technologies, with 39 fuel cell vehicles (25 buses and 14 trucks) and 31 hydrogen ICE vehicles (two buses and 29 trucks) expected to be deployed.

The 12 pilot projects involve vehicle manufacturers, oil and gas companies, utilities, state agencies and hydrogen technology providers, including NTPC, NHPC, Indian Oil Corporation, KPI Green Energy, Waree Group and Indify Horizon Fuel Cell Technologies.

The participating vehicle manufacturers include Ashok Leyland, Tata Motors and Volvo. The routes will operate across at least 10 states and the National Capital Territory (NCT) of Delhi, primarily along intercity and long-haul freight corridors, with a concentration in Gujarat, Kerala, Madhya Pradesh and the Delhi NCT. The agencies operating the vehicles will be required to provide feedback on vehicle performance, efficiency, fuel consumption, safety and utilisation.

India's National Green Hydrogen Mission targets annual production of five million tonnes of green hydrogen.

Earlier this month, Indian Railways introduced the country's first hydrogen-powered train into service. The 10-coach, fuel cell-powered train, with a capacity of 2,600 passengers, operates on the 89 km route between Jind and Sonipat.

In May, the Delhi Metro Rail Corporation deployed two fuel cell-powered buses for operation in the country's capital.