Cabinet note on coal bed methane exploration moved

Union Coal Secretary Anil Swarup on Thursday said a Cabinet note had been moved to discuss and take a call on the policy for exploration of the coal bed methane (CBM) from coal mines. The coal block auction policy of the government has led to the concern about CBM reserve in the mines. According to the global standard practice, methane gas, which is trapped in the pores of coal, is harnessed prior to mining of coal. If it is extracted, it can be used to run industries, power stations among others.

There have been reports of oil ministry's concern about permanent loss of CBM in the mines, which have already been auctioned. India has the fourth-largest proven coal reserves in the world but there is a lack of detailed assessment of CBM reserves. "We are looking into the aspect, whether there can be simultaneous extraction, whether there would be single player or multiple players for coal mining and CBM extraction -- all these things will be discussed," Coal Secretary Anil Swarup said on the sidelines of a Bharat Chamber of Commerce interactive session here.

Meanwhile, speaking on the pricing of coal by Coal India (CIL), he said the government always wants state-run CIL to keep coal prices low for cheaper power tariff. "The government owns majority of shares in CIL. In the board, we convey concerns of the government to keep tariff down. They will have to keep the price of coal down," he said.

"Coal India has a purpose to serve. If CIL were allowed to fix their own price for profitability, then they will fix price 10 per cent below of imported landed coal," he noted.