Cummins Taps India’s Hydrogen Ecosystem for Growth Amid Push for Green Supply Chains

Engine manufacturer Cummins India has announced major moves to expand its offerings in the Indian market over the next few years. At the Bharat Mobility Expo, the company launched the HELM (Higher Efficiency, Lower Emissions, Multiple Fuels) engine platform and an advanced Hydrogen Fuel Delivery System (FDS) for heavy-duty vehicles.

The new products are part of its destination-zero strategy to aid decarbonisation in the auto sector. With the company investing in expanding offerings, Shveta Arya, Managing Director at Cummins India, said that the company is working on building the infrastructure for the hydrogen ecosystem. “We are working with policymakers, industry bodies and customers to see how we can build infrastructure. Our hydrogen fuel delivery system will aid the ecosystem,” she told Outlook Business.

The leadership of Cummins, based in the United States, insisted that India is emerging as the top destination for developing hydrogen-based platforms. Nitin Jirafe, Vice President of Engine Business ànd Managing Director at Tata Cummins, believes that local manufacturing will also aid in exporting to other countries.

“The 6.7-litre hydrogen internal combustion engine will only be manufactured in India. It will help India meet its decarbonisation need and also produce for global markets wherever there will be a need,” he noted.

At the Bharat Mobility Expo, the green theme dominated for all the major automobile players. Maruti Suzuki, Hero Motocorp, and Tata Motors, among other firms announced plans to move towards cleaner solutions.

For Cummins, the introduction of the new Hydrogen system comes at a time when the country is working on developing its green hydrogen ecosystem. Big industrial firms like Reliance Industries and Larsen & Toubro are working on developing green hydrogen in the country.

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But as the new technologies develop, the company is also conscious of how discussion on cost optimisation plays out. While newer technologies are able to reduce emissions, it is still unclear whether it can be done at the same cost as older tried and tested models.

Jirafe explained that the company will work on a dual path. “We will continue to work on our current product line and make them efficient to reduce emissions. We will increase work on the HELM model. At the same time, we will invest in new technologies,” he said.

Cummins has announced that it will become carbon neutral by 2050, and the company is working on greening its supply chains. The leadership insisted that a significant amount is being invested to green their supply chains.

Over the last year, there have been several discussions on green supply chains. Recently, firms like Flipkart and Exide have invested in reducing emissions in their supply chains by using LNG trucks for transportation.