India’s first Hydrogen Bus trial starts on Ladakh roads

India’s first deployment of hydrogen fuelled buses on public roads has started in Ladakh with government-owned power giant NTPC launching its intracity trial run in Leh.

Towards achieving Carbon-Neutral Ladakh, NTPC is setting up a Hydrogen Fuelling Station, Solar Plant and providing 5 buses powered with Fuel Cell for operation on intracity routes of Leh,” the company said.

The first hydrogen bus reached Leh on 17th August as part of a 3-month-long process of field-trials, roadworthiness tests and other statutory procedures.

The first of its kind Green Hydrogen Mobility Project at 11,562 ft is co-located with a dedicated Solar plant of 1.7 MW for providing renewable power. The fuel cell buses are designed for operation in sub-zero temperature in rarefied atmosphere, typical to such altitude locations which is a unique feature of this project, the company said.

NTPC is committed to achieve 60 GW of Renewable Energy capacity by 2032 and be a major player in Green Hydrogen Technology and Energy Storage domain. The company is taking up several initiatives towards decarbonization such as Hydrogen blending, Carbon Capture, EV buses and Smart NTPC Townships, the public sector company said.

The Union Cabinet also approved an outlay of Rs 19,744 crore for the National Green Hydrogen Mission from financial year 2023-24 to 2029-30. The overarching objective of the Mission is to make India a global hub for production, usage and export of Green Hydrogen and its derivatives.