Incentivising coal gasification to encourage players to adopt clean steel-making tech: Naveen Jindal

Private player Jindal Steel and Power on Saturday lauded the reforms announced by the government for domestic coal sector, saying the measures will encourage players in the sector to adopt clean technologies for steel making.

It will also help reduce the country's dependence on imports of petroleum products,Jindal Steel and Power Ltd (JSPL) Chairman Naveen Jindal said.

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Saturday announced a slew of measures to reduce import of substitutable coal and boost self-reliance in coal production.

In her fourth tranche of the economic package, she said nearly 50 coal blocks will be offered for bidding. Also, the government will invest Rs 50,000 crore for building evacuation infrastructure.

Coal gasification and liquefaction will be incentivised through rebate in revenue sharing, she said, adding coal bed methane (CBM) production would also be encouraged.

"We whole heartedly welcome the announcements... Incentivising coal gasification is something that we have been requesting for a long time. Last year, PM (Narendra Modi) too had stressed on its importance. This will definitely help steelmakers in producing steel using swadeshi coal, truly leading to Atma Nirbhar Bharat Abhiyan. This will also boost the economy and encourage clean coal technologies that use coal in an environment-friendly manner," the JSPL chairman said.

Noting that India has third-largest reserves of coal in the world, the chairman further said that with the gasification technology can help India overcome "the perennial shortage of oil, gas, methanol, ammonia and urea".

JSPL Managing Director V R Sharman had earlier said India has coal reserves for another 300 years and the time is ripe to use the reserve.

Coal can be converted into syngas which can be used for producing petrol, diesel and other petroleum products, which can reduce dependence on crude oil imports, he had informed.

JSPL already using the technology at its Angul plant in Odisha. It is the India's first and only plant producing steel from swadeshi coal using the coal gasification technology.

On the auction of coal blocks, Jindal said: "The reforms for opening up of domestic coal for commercial mining is a revolutionary step and the move will attract more investments, boost domestic coal production and reduce our dependance on imports".

He further said the measures will also improve the ease of doing business in India and also give a boost to 'Make in India' initiative.