Intra-companies coal linkages to be liberalised: Goyal

The central government is on the way to frame a policy to liberalise coal linkages within intra-companies enabling them to swap coal linkages within same companies to help bring down cost of power, Coal and Power Minister Piyush Goyal said here on Tuesday.

According to a statement from the coal ministry, reassessment of coal grades more accurately and permission of intra-companies linkages will help India save approximately Rs.20,000 crore in power bills.

Goyal said the government has initiated third party sampling to check the grade quality of coal and the coal ministry will be asking the fossil fuel controller to reassess the grades of all coal mines.

As per the statement, the government will also be setting up large-scale coal washeries which can handle 250 million tonnes of coal in next three years.

"By 2030, India will be a country of largely modern and efficient coal based plants," said Goyal, as per the statement.

The minister confirmed that coal will continue to be the mainstay of power in the country but the pollution level can significantly be kept low with innovative technologies.

He said the central government's continued focus on LED-technology based lighting will be followed with major thrust on air-conditioners both in terms of consumption and reduction of CFC gasses in the environment.

Talking about the grid system in the renewable energy sector, he said contracts worth Rs.38,000 crore has already been sanctioned through competitive bidding for creating green corridors and is further hopeful about aggressive bidding on transmission lines.