In order to develop one of India’s largest proton exchange membrane (PEM) electrolyzers at Vijaipur, Madhya Pradesh, GAIL will use technology that will be provided by Cummins in partnership with EPC player Tecnimont (TCMPL), the Indian subsidiary of Maire Tecnimont Group.
To produce electrolyzers for the GAIL project, Cummins India will use its patented PEM electrolysis technology. It is projected that this project will produce 4.3 tonnes of green hydrogen every day (equivalent to around 10 MW of electrical power input).
“We are deeply connected with India’s National Hydrogen Mission to pave the way toward zero emissions and enable the transition to decarbonized power,” stated Ashwath Ram, MD of Cummins India. The PEM Electrolyser technology-based GAIL Green Hydrogen production project is a first of its kind and will open the door for several such initiatives of this nature in the future.
“Despite being the smallest and most plentiful element in the universe, hydrogen is never discovered in its elemental form in the natural world; instead, it is always separated from other compounds that include hydrogen. Therefore, the manner of hydrogen production determines how efficiently it aids in decarbonization, he continued.
Ram added that whereas green hydrogen is created through water electrolysis with electricity obtained from renewable sources, brown or grey hydrogen is created through coal gasification or steam methane reforming. PEM electrolyzers are produced all around the world using a proprietary PEM electrolysis technology that Cummins invented.
According to Cummins, it has provided and put into service more than 600 electrolyzers using PEM and alkaline technologies worldwide to date. Leading hydrogen use cases including hydrogen filling stations, industrial uses, gas grids, and energy storage initiatives successfully employ them.
