The steel ministry is set to kick off its first pilot project aimed at decarbonising the sector with Matrix Gas and Renewables leading the initiative from Raipur. The IPO-bound company will use green hydrogen as a substitute for coal in sponge iron manufacturing, potentially paving the way for more sustainable steelmaking across the country.
As the lowest bidder for the pilot project, Matrix Gas and Renewables will receive the letter of award (LOA) from the ministry in the coming week, Chirag Kotecha, who is the managing director of the Chhattisgarh-based company, told Moneycontrol in an exclusive interview.
Matrix is working with a consortium, which includes technology partners and the IIT Bhubaneswar, to develop an indigenous technology which will explore the use of green hydrogen to convert iron ore into sponge iron by removing oxygen.
Coal or natural gas is used traditionally for this, but green hydrogen is a cleaner alternative because it produces only water as a byproduct, instead of carbon emissions.
Matrix is working with a consortium, which includes technology partners and the IIT Bhubaneswar, to develop an indigenous technology which will explore the use of green hydrogen to convert iron ore into sponge iron by removing oxygen. Coal or natural gas is used traditionally for this, but green hydrogen is a cleaner alternative because it produces only water as a byproduct, instead of carbon emissions.
We will set up a 50-tonne-per-day plant focused on green hydrogen fuel production, which will serve as a prototype. We have secured capacity agreements with steel manufacturers in Raipur, and this is a build-operate project, fully funded through our own resources, Kotecha said. The company has set a Rs 400-crore budget for this project.