The Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE) recently organized a one-day Hydrogen Startup Exhibition. The aim of the exhibition was to promote the vibrant hydrogen startup ecosystem in the country.
The exhibition brought together 18 promising startups working across various segments of the green hydrogen value chain, including electrolyser technologies, fuel cell applications, biomass-to-hydrogen production, and digital solutions for hydrogen systems. The participating startups demonstrated their technologies and products and interacted with key stakeholders from government, industry, and the research community.
It may be noted that as per Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT), there were 249 startups in the hydrogen area as of September 2025.
The participating companies included five electrolyzer startups (electrolyzers and associated stack components), two hydrogen production startups, one fuel cell startup, one hydrogen applications startup, one safety startup (MEMS-based sensor), two drone startups, three hydrogen cooking startups, one artificial intelligence/machine learning startup, and two bio-hydrogen startups.
Principal Scientific Adviser to the Government of India, Prof. Ajay Sood, graced the occasion and interacted with the startup founders. Other dignitaries included MNRE Secretary Santosh Sarangi, Scientific Secretary in the PSA Office Dr. Parvinder Maini, and NGHM Director Abhay Bakre.
MNRE had launched the scheme for New and Novel Uses of Hydrogen Production and Applications last year, under which Part B of the scheme earmarked Rs. 100 crores for startup funding (pilot projects), with a maximum grant of Rs. 5 crore per startup. Following the scheme launch, NISE had issued a Call for Proposals (CfP) in September 2025. A total of 111 applications were received, out of which 58 were shortlisted for presentation before the Project Appraisal Committee earlier this year.
