H₂ Monthly Digest - June 2026

Focus of the Month - India's Hydrogen Ecosystem: From Policy to Production

India’s green hydrogen and ammonia sector crossed a remarkable threshold in June 2026, shifting from announcements to commissioned infrastructure and binding international trade. On the technology frontier, the Department of Atomic Energy inaugurated the world's first nuclear-heat-based hydrogen facility at Kalpakkam, using the indigenous copper-chlorine thermochemical cycle to demonstrate carbon-free production without electrolysis¹. At the same time, India reinforced its role as an export hub as Japan certified the ACME–IHI Odisha project under its price-gap CfD scheme, unlocking roughly $3 billion in subsidy support. As part of this framework, Japan approved a consortium of six companies—IHI, Mitsui O.S.K. Lines, Hokkaido Electric, Mitsubishi Gas Chemical, Mizuho Bank and Tokyo Century—to source H2 and derivatives from India under CfD. Europe moved in parallel: VOCPA's MoU with Germany’s H2Global opened a second major buyer corridor alongside Japan^{2, 3, 4}.

Domestically, enabling infrastructure caught up as PowerGrid won the TBCB tender to develop an ISTS project supporting planned green hydrogen and green ammonia projects in Kakinada, Andhra Pradesh. The project includes a new 765/400 kV GIS substation with STATCOM and a 765 kV transmission line, to be developed on a build-own-operate-transfer basis. It follows PowerGrid’s February 2026 commissioning of a Rajasthan ISTS project enabling evacuation of 8.1 GW of solar power from renewable energy zones. The government also advanced downstream demand-side integration, unveiling a green urea roadmap and reaffirming 724 thousand tonnes per annum KTPA of green ammonia procurement for fertiliser plants^{5, 6}. In addition, IFC, Siemens and Fullerton are co-leading a $105 million equity investment in Hygenco to scale green hydrogen and ammonia projects in India, supporting industrial decarbonisation and the National Green Hydrogen Mission. Together, these developments show that India has moved beyond policy ambition towards a functioning, export-oriented hydrogen ecosystem spanning nuclear R&D, grid infrastructure, sovereign investment and bilateral offtake, with Japan and Germany emerging as its two anchor international partners⁷.

Source(s): 1: DAE, 2: Fuel Cells Works, 3: Fuel Cells Works, 4: H2Global, 5: Renewable Watch, 6: DD India, 7: Net Zero Investor

Stegra has closed a €1.4 billion financing round led by a Wallenberg Investments consortium, with support from existing investors, new shareholders and its lender group. The capital will support the completion and commissioning of Stegra’s large-scale, near-zero-emissions green steel plant in Boden, Sweden. The Boden steel plant is due to begin operations this year, using a 700 MW electrolyser to convert iron ore into direct reduced iron (DRI), with a targeted annual capacity of 5 million tonnes of green steel per year by 2030.

Indian conglomerate ACME Group has signed an investment agreement with Oman’s Public Authority for Special Economic Zones and Free Zones covering the second and third expansion phases of its green hydrogen and green ammonia project in Duqm. The $2 billion project has two expansion phases, with each phase aiming to produce 400 KTPA of green ammonia and 71 KTPA of green hydrogen. Commercial operation of the second phase is expected to begin in 2030 and the third phase in 2033.

GreenH2Atlantic has obtained a favourable conditional environmental impact statement from Portugal’s APA for a 100 MW green hydrogen production unit at the former Sines coal-fired power plant site. The project is led by HyTLantic, backed by EDP, Galp, Bondalti, Martifer and Vestas, with technical partners including Siemens, INESC TEC, HyLab, DLR and CEA. The project has secured €92 million in EU support from Horizon 2020 and Innovation Fund mechanisms but still requires a final investment decision.

Hynfra signed an MoU with a local partner to expand into the Philippines, targeting a green ammonia project on Mindoro Island valued at roughly $1 billion to $1.5 billion. The initial phase aims to produce 100 KTPA of green ammonia per year, with potential to scale up to one million tonnes per year. The plant would include on-site renewable energy generation, an ammonia synthesis facility, export logistics and maintenance infrastructure.

Air Products has scrapped its planned 1,700-tonne-per-day blue hydrogen and ammonia project in Louisiana. The decision was based on expected financial returns not meeting its “stringent return criteria”. The company is also shutting down a liquid hydrogen facility in Arizona, among other smaller-scale projects. Initial operation had been planned for 2026, then postponed to 2029. The budget had swollen from $4.5 billion to $9 billion.

thyssenkrupp Uhde was awarded Pre-FEED contracts by Fuella AS for two large-scale green ammonia projects: the Pecém Green Ammonia Project (PEGA) and the Açu Green Ammonia Project (AÇUGA), both in Brazil, announced June 9, 2026. Each project targets production of 400 KTPA of green ammonia, using thyssenkrupp Uhde's Uhde® ammonia synthesis technology, designed for dynamic, renewable-powered ammonia production.

European Energy has secured up to €228 million under Germany’s European Hydrogen Bank-linked auction to expand its Kassø Power-to-X site in Denmark with 150 MW of renewable hydrogen production capacity. The project, one of three Danish hydrogen schemes selected to supply Germany, builds on European Energy’s existing e-methanol platform and targets demand from hard-to-abate transport and industrial sectors supported by rising RFNBO mandates. Its delivery will depend on the planned Denmark–Germany hydrogen pipeline, which is expected to transport Danish renewable hydrogen to German off-takers.

Salzgitter AG and EWE have signed a long-term green hydrogen supply contract for the SALCOS® low-CO₂ steelmaking programme at Salzgitter Flachstahl. EWE will deliver around 10 KTPA of green hydrogen from its 320 MW electrolyser project in Emden, starting in 2030 via Germany’s hydrogen core network. SALCOS® could ultimately use up to 150 KTPA of hydrogen in direct reduction steelmaking, while Salzgitter also plans 9 KTPA from an on-site 100 MW electrolyser. The project supports the shift from coal-based blast furnaces to hydrogen-based steelmaking, where water replaces CO₂ as the main by-product.

Technip Energies, Airbus, Safran and Tereos entered into a joint venture agreement to develop a sustainable aviation fuel production project at the Port of Dunkirk, France. The project uses the alcohol-to-jet pathway to produce 160 KTPA of SAF. Technip Energies will lead development and engineering, Airbus and Safran will act as industrial partners and offtakers, and Tereos will supply the advanced ethanol feedstock. The site has been awarded by the Port of Dunkirk.

Wärtsilä has begun validating its 100% hydrogen multi-fuel 31H2 engine at Bermeo, Spain, to support the national electricity grid. The demonstration moves beyond hydrogen-ready technology and could enable hydrogen engines for grid power, industry and energy-intensive sectors such as AI data centres.

Norwegian Hydrogen has been announced as the hydrogen supplier for eight of the nine ships that received grant funding from Enova. A total of NOK 600 million in grants for these eight ships was awarded under Enova’s new “Hydrogen in Vessels” programme. Three Norwegian Hydrogen customers received the largest grants: Marius Fiducia Norway AS (around NOK 300 million for five vessels), Møre Sjø AS (NOK 175.2 million for two vessels), and Napier AS (NOK 123 million for one vessel). In total, nine hydrogen-fuelled and six ammonia-fuelled ships received grants.

The International Energy Agency (IEA) has cut the volume of clean hydrogen production it considers likely to be operating by 2030 by around 40%. Despite a 27 million tonnes per annum (MTPA) clean hydrogen project pipeline for 2030, the agency now sees just over 6 MTPA as having a strong chance of reaching operation by the end of the decade, down from 10 MTPA in its previous Global Hydrogen Review. It said a further 22 MTPA of projects eyeing end-of-decade start-up are at risk unless final investment decisions (FID) are taken within the next year.

Daimler Truck AG and KEYOU GmbH are collaborating to bring hydrogen-powered internal combustion engines to market readiness as a complementary drive solution for road freight transport. Daimler Truck’s existing vehicle and engine variants form the technical basis for rapid implementation and market introduction. KEYOU is responsible for the hydrogen conversion, with service providers from the Munich-based company adapting vehicles and engines accordingly. Market launch is planned for 2027.

South Korea's Ministry of Climate, Energy and Environment (MCEE) has announced plans to offer 1.4 TWh of power generation derived from hydrogen or hydrogen compounds for the 2026 bidding market. Under the framework of its Hydrogen Economy Promotion and Hydrogen Safety Management Act, the country plans to tender 500 GWh/year for clean hydrogen power generation and 930 GWh/year for general hydrogen power generation in its 2026 Hydrogen Power Generation Bidding Market. The bidding volumes for 2027 and beyond are expected to be announced each year. The announcement represents a reduction from the previous hydrogen power auction volume.

These executive brief reviews the status of retrofitting existing heavy transportation vehicles with hydrogen technology allowing the reduction of carbon emissions to net-zero. It includes various aspects: the market dynamics, the key stakeholders and regulations, and potential support schemes