HYDERABAD: The Ministry of Coal organised an industry interaction session on the scheme to promote coal gasification projects across the country in Hyderabad on Friday. Coal Ministry Secretary Amrit Lal Meena graced the event as the chief guest.
During the session, the secretary elaborated on the government’s recent allocation of Rs 8,500 crore for the scheme to promote coal gasification. He said that the gasification, including lignite (low-carbon coal), facilitates the production of chemicals such as dimethyl ether, methanol, synthetic LNG, and ammonia locally, thereby reducing dependence on imports. He mentioned that currently, the country has an operational gasification plant in Angul, Odisha.
Regarding production targets, secretary Amrit informed that in 2022–23, India mined 893 million tonnes of coal and for 2023–24, a production target of 1 billion tonnes has been set. He said efforts to bring in private players led to an increase in domestic coal production, and a decrease in coal imports, from 26% in 2019 to 19% (expected) this year.