India, Saudi tie up for grid, green hydrogen

livemint.com:

NEW DELHI : India and Saudi Arabia on Sunday signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) on securing a green hydrogen supply chain and cooperation on power grid interconnection. The MoU was signed in Riyadh by union minister for power and new & renewable energy RK Singh and the Saudi minister of energy Abdulaziz bin Salman Al-Saud on the sidelines of the MENA Climate Week 2023.

“This memorandum of understanding aims to establish a general framework for cooperation between the two countries in the field of electrical interconnection; exchange of electricity during peak times and emergencies; co-development of projects; co-production of green/clean hydrogen and renewable energy; and also establishing secure, reliable and resilient supply chains of materials used in green/clean hydrogen and the renewable energy sector," said a statement from the ministry of power. The MoU comes nearly a month after both countries signed an agreement for cooperation in energy, including in renewable energy, energy efficiency, grid interconnection, strategic petroleum reserves and energy security.

Mint first reported on 25 April that India plans to interconnect the national power grids of the two countries through a subsea cable. India has been exploring linking its power grid with those of Saudi Arabia and the UAE through subsea cables from its west coast and with the power grid of Singapore from the east coast.

By sharing power resources across regions, countries can reduce the need for costly renewable energy storage solutions and improve the reliability of their power grids. India’s pursuit of grid interconnectivity could also prove critical to its long-term economic and energy security goals.