TGBL joins hands with PMC to extract clean, green hydrogen from waste

The GreenBillions Limited (TGBL) joined hands with The Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) to set up its first plant in India to extract green hydrogen from biomass and municipal solid waste. This project aims to demonstrate the technological and financial feasibility of waste to hydrogen generation. 

The GreenBillions specialises in consulting, managing, and executing sustainable initiatives. TGBL deals with environment-friendly products and solutions. The company is currently investing in setting up plants that can extract clean and green hydrogen from biomass, water, and municipal solid waste.

The upcoming plant in Pune will be managed by its wholly-owned subsidiary Variate Pune Waste to Energy Pvt. Ltd. (VPWTEPL).  The company will also utilise the municipal waste of 350 tonne per day (TPD) of Pune to generate hydrogen for a period of 30 years, said TGBL in a statement. Refuse derived fuel (RDF) extracted from the waste would later be used to generate hydrogen with the help of Plasma gasification technology. The waste will comprise biodegradable, non-biodegradable and domestic hazardous waste and would be segregated at the TheGreenBillions’s facility in Pune using optical sensor technology.  

In the meantime, the firm is also in talks with other state municipalities across India to implement and set up similar plants in the future.

Prateek Kanakia, chairman and founder commented on the occasion and said, "With the rising demand from the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE) to generate Clean Hydrogen, it is essential to find alternatives to foster clean hydrogen in the country. We recognise that an efficient garbage collection and disposal system is crucial for quality urban solid waste management. Especially in India, unsustainable garbage management affects living spaces for many cities. Our association with the Pune Municipal Corporation is a step forward in mitigating these demands.”

Generating hydrogen can help India achieve its decarbonisation goals while significantly reducing emissions from waste disposal.

"With this project, Pune city can reduce upto 2.5 million MT CO2e, more than 3.8 million MT waste would be diverted from the landfill and around more than 1,80,000 estimated households will be served directly. The Municipal solid waste (MSW) otherwise being dumped in low lying urban areas will be diverted, saving upto 689.5 cubic meter space every day and 25.16 hectare of precious land per year,” the official statement from Broadcast Engineering Consultants India Limited (BECIL) said