Silicon, Hydrogen To Emerge as Next Decade’s ‘New Oil’ for Reliance

Reliance Industries Ltd plans to transform its energy business with an over-arching strategy to offer decarbonisation solutions globally at a competitive price in a market potentially worth USD 5 trillion by 2030, Morgan Stanley said.

The success RIL has enjoyed from entry into offering telecom data in the past half a decade surprised the market. And we expect silicon and hydrogen to emerge as the next decade’s ‘New Oil’ for RIL, with potentially up to $60 billion in value creation if things fall into place by 2025, said Morgan Stanley.

According to Morgan Stanley, Reliance Industries has plans to provide solutions related to hydrogen, solar PV and grid batteries is “unique” and could allow it to stand out as “one of the most integrated infrastructure providers”, not just in India but globally.

“The strategy is to provide supporting infrastructure in areas of hydrogen, integrated solar PV and grid batteries – all areas with high entry barriers, technological advances and good returns,” the report said.

The oil-to-telecom conglomerate plans to create 4 giga factories offering the entire spectrum of renewable/distributed energy solutions, as it capitalises on India’s quartz and silicon resources.

The focus on the hydrogen value chain offers significant opportunities to decarbonise energy operations, compliment vitality storage with batteries and potentially export green ammonia.

The plan would make Reliance the largest renewable infrastructure producer with the potential to become an alternative technology supplier to the globe, within the current geopolitical setup, similar to how it exports high-grade refinery fuels, Morgan Stanley explained in a report.