Govt plans greener use of coal, mines as production surges
New Delhi: India is looking to mechanise coal evacuation processes and use closed mines for purposes such as solar parks even as it’s faced with the inevitable prospect of increasing coal production to meet growing demand for energy.
The moves are part of India’s energy transition efforts to meet its ambitious climate targets, with environmental sustainability a key theme of the government’s ‘Vision 2047’ programme.
“About 90% of the mechanisation is expected to be done with a capital expenditure of around ₹30,000 crore, of which around ₹24,000 crore will be invested by Coal India,” said a person familiar with the developments, declining to be identified. The remaining capex is expected to come from the private sector.
Mechanising coal evacuation involves the use of conveyor belts for first-mile connectivity.
Last week, Union minister for coal and mines, Pralhad Joshi, chaired a meeting with officials from the ministry to discuss the ‘Vision 2047’ roadmap.
To encourage greener use of coal, the government is looking at promoting more sustainable practices such as coal gasificiation, which involves turning coal into cleaner fuel gas. The gas can also be used to produce other fuels such as hydrogen, methane, methanol and ethanol.
A ₹6,000-crore viability gap funding for gasification projects is in the works and awaiting cabinet approval. Though the government aims to gasify 100 million tonnes of coal by 2030 under the National Coal Gasification plan, the practice has not picked up in India because of the huge expenses involved, and because Indian coal has high ash content.
The government is also looking at repurposing closed mines by creating water bodies or green-energy infrastructure such as solar parks in those areas.
Despite the push towards sustainability, India’s coal production is expected to increase over the coming decade. It’s expected to cross 1 billion tonnes this year; the government’s target for 2030 is 1.5 billion tonnes.
“Under ‘Vision 2047’, one of the things the government is looking at is coal availability. Several studies show that although the share of renewable energy installed capacity will increase going ahead, absolute demand for coal will also rise,” said another person familiar with the developments.
“Although in percentage terms the share of coal-based power may decline, in absolute terms the demand will rise. Increasing production to 1,800 million tonnes by 2047 is the target.”
