As India continues its trajectory to achieve the climate goals and bring progressive reforms across the energy value chain to reduce carbon emissions, it presents a unique opportunity for energy companies such as GE Gas Power to contribute towards decarbonization of the power sector in the country. GE Gas Power is prioritizing investment in powering technology to cost-effectively scale renewables and move towards net-zero gas power generation with advances in using up to 100% hydrogen as a fuel in gas turbines to generate cleaner electricity.
“Globally, renewable energy (RE) is among the fastest growing source of new power generation, offering limitless carbon-free electricity that’s affordable. However, the pace of RE deployment is yet not enough to combat climate change. GE believes that accelerated and strategic deployment of renewables and gas power can change the near-term trajectory for climate change, enabling substantive reductions in emissions quickly, while in parallel continuing to advance the technologies for near zero-carbon power generation. Gas power plants are capable of compensating for longer gaps in renewable production in ways that today’s battery storage technology cannot,” said Deepesh Nanda, CEO, GE Gas Power South Asia. “India needs stringent policy framework that incentivizes reductions in power sector carbon intensity, allowing lifecycle economics to drive investment decisions and market structures that value energy, flexibility and dependable capacity.”
“While India’s goal of becoming a green hydrogen export hub by 2030 looks ambitious, the country has the production capabilities, technical expertise, adequate resources, and scalable electrolyzing capability to turn the vision into a reality. A successful transition to green hydrogen can delink India from global gas price volatility and eliminate dependence on imported fuels. Being a self-reliant low-carbon energy producer that offers round-the-clock and affordable electricity can be a game changer for the country’s next few decades,” said Deepesh. “We need a policy regime that can promote holistic development of the green hydrogen economy, creating a ready market for the producers. Mechanisms such as carbon credits, mandating use of green H2 in gas turbines for power generation in industrial manufacturing of steel, fertilizers and in petroleum refineries can go a long way in reducing CO2 emissions.”
As such, natural gas offers the lowest carbon emissions per megawatt hour of power generated among all fossil fuels, reaching as low as 310 grams of carbon dioxide per kilowatt hour (gCO2 /kWh), versus about 547-935 gCO2 /kWh or more, for liquid fuel plants, and 750-1,000 gCO2 /kWh for coalfired power plants. Gas turbine technology-based power generation can balance the grid and supply power at competitive prices both in standalone generation and when bundled with RE. India has the available gas infrastructure that is underutilized, and can be leveraged to enhance the share of natural gas to 15 percent in the energy mix, while accelerating growth of RE at the same time. Moreover, a combination of hydrogen and natural gas can form a potential pathway to decarbonize India’s energy bucket in the long-term and providing cleaner and more reliable and sustainable power supply.
GE has 100+ gas turbines supporting power generation with hydrogen and associated fuels around the world and the fleet has accumulated more than 8 million operating hours. GE’s gas turbine portfolio, including the B- and E-class, has the capability to burn hydrogen levels from 5% (by volume) up to 100%. This capability varies depending on the type of combustion system used. GE’s aero-derivative gas turbines known for capabilities such as quick installation, fast-ramp, higher reliability and availability, deeper turndown with high part load efficiency, fuel flexibility, seamless RE integration, and fast frequency response form an apt solution to provide the necessary flexibility for modern grids. In India, GE Gas Power has a significant installed base of over ~260 utility and industrial gas turbines across both Government and private sector power plants.
GE Gas Power’s leadership team including Deepesh Nanda, CEO, GE Gas Power South Asia; Krishnakumar PG, Regional Director, Services Application Engineering, GE Gas Power Asia; and Prakash Dalsania, Engineering Leader, GE Gas Power Asia shared insights during various panel discussions, held at PowerGEN India, around GE’s global expertise in the energy space and advanced technologies that are leading energy transition.
About GE Gas Power
GE Gas Power is a world leader in natural gas power technology, services, and solutions. Through relentless innovation and continuous collaboration with our customers, we are providing more advanced, cleaner and efficient power that people depend on today and building the energy technologies of the future. With the world’s largest installed base of gas turbines and more than 670 million operating hours across GE’s installed fleet, we offer advanced technology and a level of experience that’s unmatched in the industry to build, operate, and maintain leading gas power plants.
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GE Gas Power is part of GE Vernova, a dynamic accelerator comprised of our Power, Renewable Energy, Digital and Energy Financial Services businesses, focused on supporting customers’ transformations during the global energy transition.