Essar launches EET to commit $3.6 billion to India's and the UK's energy transition

and ESG-compliant technologies to last for several decades. Other sustainability investments planned by the Essar Group beyond EET include the creation of an LNG value chain in India, including LNG truck manufacturing and LNG fuel stations, setting up a pellet plant in Odisha, in eastern India and a 4-million tonnes per annum green steel complex at Ras-Al-Khair, Saudi Arabia. EET's strategy is founded on the fact that hydrogen and biofuels are fast becoming globally significant fuels of the future and that the UK is positioned strongly to spearhead the rapid growth of the European low carbon fuels market.

The UK already benefits from an advanced regulatory and policy framework to support low carbon energy production, including the UK government's target of achieving 10GW of hydrogen production by 2030, alongside developing low carbon hydrogen infrastructure, expertise and significant customer demand. Such is the scale of the market growth opportunity that EET estimates approximately two- thirds of its aggregate cash flows could come from diversified low carbon sources before the end of the decade.

As a core part of the HyNet cluster, Essar's Stanlow site already plays a prominent role in the UK's energy transition planning framework, following the selection of HyNet by the UK government in 2021 as one of only two hydrogen clusters in the country to potentially be supported through to full operations. The Stanlow refinery itself will also achieve a 75 per cent reduction in carbon emissions before the end of this decade as part of EET's decarbonisation plans, making this strategically critical fuel supplier to the UK one of the most sustainable refineries in Europe.

In addition to the USD 2.4 billion investment in the UK, EET will also invest USD 1.2 billion in developing a cost-efficient global supply hub for low carbon fuels in India, including green hydrogen and green ammonia. Ammonia will be shipped from India to the UK, Europe and globally to meet expanding market demand for green hydrogen. EET's investment in India will help deliver on the country's emerging hydrogen ambition. The Indian government's supportive regulatory framework is designed to help position the country as a leading global hub of green hydrogen production and exports, as set out in its National Green Hydrogen Mission, approved by the Centre on January 4.

Prashant Ruia, Director, Essar Capital, said: "The launch of EET is a major milestone in Essar's long-standing commitment to put the UK at the forefront of low carbon energy. We are excited about the opportunity to drive the UK's energy transition by producing low carbon future fuels which will help eliminate around 20% of the industrial carbon dioxide in Northwest England. In doing so, it will provide a blueprint for how traditional industries globally can be successfully transformed into hubs for the production of future energies."

Tony Fountain, managing partner of Essar Energy Transition, "EET's ambitious investment plans will not only help the UK achieve its net zero goals and the significant environmental benefits that come with them, but they will also secure Stanlow's long-term sustainability, preserving and generating new opportunities for highly skilled employment at the centre of the Northern Powerhouse economy for future generations.