Neyveli Lignite Corporation Limited (NLC) will be investing a whopping Rs 29,239 crore in coal and power sectors during the Twelfth Plan.
Union Minister of Coal Sriprakash Jaiswal said this to the members of Parliamentary Consultative Committee attached to his Ministry during a meeting held at New Delhi on Wednesday.
Of the total investment, Rs 26,728.40 crore would be for power projects and Rs 2,510.70 crore would be towards coal projects. He further said the NLC has also planned to set up wind farm with an investment of Rs 364.75 crore and solar power project with the cost of Rs 13,319 crore.
During the Twelfth Plan, NLC has planned expansion of a number of its ongoing projects including mines at Neyveli and Barsingsar (Rajasthan) and the power plant at Tuticorin.
Stating that already NLC was working for the development of Underground Coal Gasification (UGC) projects, the Minister said the UCG project in Raneri (Rajasthan) would be taken up through a suitable developer through competitive bidding. The UCG projects in Rajasthan and Gujarat would be implemented in joint venture with ONGC.
He further said that by 2016-17, lignite production in the country was expected to reach 290.16 MT.