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GOVERNMENT OF INDIA
MINISTRY OF PORTS, SHIPPING AND WATERWAYS
RAJYA SABHA
UNSTARRED QUESTION NO.476
ANSWERED ON 03.02.2026
INDIA'S MARITIME GREEN HYDROGEN AND ELECTRIFICATION
INITIATIVES IN EASTERN PORTS
476. SHRI SUJEET KUMAR:
Will the Minister of PORTS, SHIPPING AND WATERWAYS be pleased to state:
(a) the status of India's commitment of USD 20 billion for maritime infrastructure,
including Green Hydrogen hubs at Paradip, as announced during Nor-Shipping 2025 in Oslo;
(b) the planned scale and timelines for green hydrogen bunkering, renewable port energy
and electrification of inland waterways across eastern ports;
(c) whether Paradip and Dhamra ports in Odisha have been shortlisted for such green
corridors; and
(d) the actions being initiated to encourage indigenous electric ferries and cargo vessels,
including potential clustering around Odisha waterways, under the Green Voyage 2050 and
inland waterways initiatives?
ANSWER
MINISTER OF PORTS, SHIPPING AND WATERWAYS
(SHRI SARBANANDA SONOWAL)
(a)& (c) The status of India’s maritime infrastructure development initiatives are as
under:
(i) Shipbuilding Financial Assistance Scheme (SBFAS), with a total corpus of Rs. 24,736
crore, has been introduced to promote shipbuilding in India. Under the scheme, financial
assistance ranging from 15% to 25% per vessel will be provided. The scheme also introduces
a Shipbreaking Credit Note, which will offer shipowners an incentive equivalent to 40% of
fair scrap value of the vessel for recycling ships in India and supporting new shipbuilding
orders. In addition, the scheme envisages the establishment of a National Shipbuilding
Mission to oversee implementation and coordination, with the objective of supporting
shipbuilding projects worth Rs. 96,000 crore over the next decade.
(ii) Shipbuilding Development Scheme (SbDS), with a corpus of Rs. 19,989 crore, has
been introduced for Capacity & Capability development and credit risk coverage to accelerate
shipbuilding capacity in India through targeted interventions for new infrastructure,
modernization of existing facilities, and risk mitigation.(iii) Maritime Development Fund (MDF), with a corpus of Rs. 25,000 crore, has been
established to provide long-term financing support to the maritime sector.
(iv) Around 227 projects worth Rs. 1.16 lakh crores are at various stages of
implementation in Major ports for capacity enhancement, multimodal logistics, port
connectivity &trade facilitation.
(v) Three Major ports i.e. Deendayal Port in Gujarat, V.O. Chidambaranar Port in Tamil
Nadu and Paradip Port in Odisha have been recognised by Ministry of New and Renewable
Energy as green hydrogen hubs in the country.
(b) A pilot Green Methanol bunkering facility is under construction at V.O.
Chidambaranar Port in Tamil Nadu under the National Green Hydrogen Mission. As
envisaged in the Maritime India Vision 2030, all Major Ports are targeted to achieve more
than 60% of their energy requirement from renewable sources by 2030. Further, onshore
electric power supply facilities have been provided at 16 terminals on National Waterway-1
(River Ganga) and National Waterway-2 (River Brahmaputra) by Inland Waterways
Authority of India (IWAI).
(d) To encourage indigenous electric ferries and advance eco-friendly inland water
transport, the IWAI has procured four Hybrid Electric Catamaran Vesselsfrom Cochin
Shipyard Limited (CSL). The first two have been deployed at Varanasi (River Ganga–NW-1)
and Ayodhya (River Ghaghra–NW-40). Further, third one has already arrived at Gaighat
Terminal in Patna (NW-1) and fourth one is deployed in Kolkata (NW-1) in January 2026. As
part of aResearch &Development initiative with the CSL, the IWAI launched India’s first
hydrogen-powered catamaran, now operational in Varanasi.
Under the International Maritime Organization (lMO) Green Voyage 2050 Programme, a
study on potential demand and pricing of alternative marine fuels in lndiais presently being
conducted by IMO in collaboration with Directorate General of Shipping (DGS).
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