Thermax Limited will develop and bring to market Ceres Power’s solid oxide electrolysis cell (SOEC) systems in India under a new license agreement.
The systems license contract allows Thermax to non-exclusively manufacture Ceres’ SOEC system technology, including designs for electrolyser module systems that will be developed and sold by the Indian firm. The agreement includes license fees and product royalties to be received by Ceres.
Thermax plans to establish a manufacturing facility for the electrolyser systems, advance the supply chain and localise critical components.
The Indian National Green Hydrogen Mission has provided $2.3bn in incentive funding to enable the production of 5 million tonnes per year of green hydrogen by 2030, ahead of its 2070 Net Zero goals.
H2 View understands the partnership will accelerate the development of the system, “ready for commercial use within the hard-to-abate green ammonia, petrochemical and steel industries in India,” along with other areas Thermax has a market presence.
“This is a strategically important agreement for Ceres as we continue to build our global eco-system of world-class partners,” explained Phil Caldwell, CEO of Ceres.
“Our technology enables Thermax to develop next-generation hydrogen solutions for its customers in the hard-to-abate sectors, stimulating market demand pull for our manufacturing licenses.”
Ashish Bhandari, Managing Director & CEO of Thermax, added, “By leveraging our expertise in thermal management, we aim to offer a highly efficient and cost-effective hydrogen production solution that will accelerate the energy transition in India and globally.”
The agreement follows similar trends of electrolyser manufacturers signing license agreements as they pursue a low-CAPEX expansion. This includes the deal Nel secured with Reliance Industries Limited earlier this year.
Read more: Nel’s Indian venture: Granting access to the secret electrolyser recipe
Ceres’ Chief Commercial Officer (CCO), Tony Cochrane, previously told H2 View, that one of the key benefits of its licensing model was that it did not need to use investor capital for electrolyser manufacturing.
India, specifically, is increasingly being viewed as a potential manufacturing powerhouse for western hydrogen technology providers.
Last year the India Hydrogen Alliance (IH2A) estimated the market for Indian-manufactured hydrogen equipment could reach $50bn by 2030 – with 34% belonging to electrolyser stacks.
Read more: India’s hydrogen equipment market could reach $50bn by 2030, says IH2A
While, to the fears of many, China looks poised to dominate the hydrogen technology market, assurance industry sources have told H2 View that India is a much more open and certifiable manufacturing market.
