Tata Steel and Welspun Corp Successfully Manufacture Pipes for Pure Hydrogen Transportation

~ Tata Steel and Welspun Corp have become the first Indian companies to produce Electric Resistance Welded (ERW) pipes for transportation of gaseous hydrogen ~

~ Tata Steel and Welspun Corp entered into an MOU to develop Hydrogen compliant API X65 H grade pipes through the ERW Pipe route in 2022 ~

Mumbai, August 2, 2024: Tata Steel, a leading global steel company, and Welspun Corp, one of the largest manufacturers of line pipes globally, achieved the significant milestone of developing Hydrogen compliant API X65 grade pipes which successfully surpassed all necessary critical sour service and fracture qualification tests for transportation of 100% pure gaseous Hydrogen under high pressure (100 bar) at RINA, Italy.

With this development, Tata Steel becomes the first Indian steel mill to produce hot-rolled steel for the transportation of gaseous hydrogen and Welspun Corp has become the first Indian pipe mill to produce Electric Resistance Welded (ERW) pipes.

The Green Energy Strategic Partnership between Tata Steel and Welspun Corp was set up to assess the suitability of a variety of pipes manufactured by Welspun Corp for the transportation of Hydrogen. This partnership is synchronous with the Government of India’s (GOI) green hydrogen policy.

Prabhat Kumar, Vice President, Marketing & Sales (Flat Products), Tata Steel, said: “We are proud to achieve this milestone in partnership with Welspun Corp since it marks a critical advancement in our journey towards clean energy solutions. Through this, we are laying the groundwork for a more robust infrastructure and ecosystem necessary for the widespread adoption of green hydrogen, thereby encouraging the transition to a greener and more sustainable future.”

Commenting on this development, Vipul Mathur, Managing Director & CEO, Welspun Corp Limited (WCL) said, “WCL is continuously working towards strengthening its expanding product portfolio across the Pipe Solutions and Building Materials segments, both in India and globally while being mindful towards building a future-ready world. Our strategic partnership with Tata Steel enables us to jointly adopt and build awareness towards the usage of Green Hydrogen in our daily lives. This endeavor is in line with our ongoing efforts to strategically embed ESG drivers across our businesses, and the Government’s vision for a net-zero economy by 2070.”

The journey began in 2022 when Tata Steel and Welspun Corp entered into a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) to develop hydrogen-compliant API grade pipes through the ERW Pipe route.

Additionally, in October 2022, the Longitudinal-seam Submerged Arc Welding (LSAW) pipes produced by Welspun Corp successfully passed all qualification tests, confirming their suitability for hydrogen transportation.

Tata Steel is committed to contributing to India’s journey towards industrial decarbonisation and has already taken several steps. Most recently Tata Steel partnered with SMS group to implement the pioneering Paul Wurth Coke Oven Gas (COG) Injection Technology at their Blast Furnace in Meramandali, Odisha. Last year Tata Steel initiated a trial, the first-of-its-kind globally, at its Jamshedpur Works, injecting a record-high quantity of hydrogen gas directly into one of its Blast Furnaces. Other initiatives include trials of continuous Coal Bed Methane (CBM) injection, operation of a 5-tonnes-per-day (TPD) industrial plant for carbon capture and utilisation since September 2021, increasing scrap charge in our blast furnaces and efforts to reduce freshwater consumption, develop sustainable supply chains, and embrace circular economy principles.