The government has approved $2.3 billion to support the production, use, and export of green hydrogen, aiming to make India a global hub for the nascent industry.

The funding, announced late Wednesday, is a first step toward establishing the capacity to make at least 5 million metric tons of green hydrogen by the end of this decade.

Green hydrogen is hydrogen that is produced through the electrolysis of water, powered by electricity generated from renewable sources of energy. Most of the world’s hydrogen is produced using fossil fuels, especially natural gas.

The aim of the funding initiative is “to make green hydrogen affordable and bring down its cost over the next five years. It will also help India reduce its emissions and become a major exporter in the field,” said Anurag Thakur, India’s minister for information and broadcasting.

He said the financing would also help add about 125 GW of renewable energy capacity by 2030. As of October, India had about 166 gigawatts of renewable energy capacity.

Other aims are to create more than a half million new jobs, attract more private investment into the sector, reduce fossil fuel imports and cut greenhouse gas emissions by 50 million metric tons.

Many of India’s leading renewable energy companies, including companies owned by the Adani Group, Reliance Industries and JSW Energy; public sector companies like Indian Oil and NTPC Limited; and renewable-only companies such as Renew power are investing in production of green hydrogen.

Green hydrogen now amounts to a small fraction of global hydrogen use, estimated to be about 70 million tons per year. Most commercially produced hydrogen is grey hydrogen, produced using fossil fuels, and blue hydrogen that is also made using fossil fuels but with the use of carbon capture systems to reduce emissions. The production of green hydrogen results in the emission of little to no greenhouse gases.