CIL to set up $3 bn worth clean energy projects to boost renewable heft

Coal India will set up clean energy projects of around 4.5 gigawatts at a cost of ₹25,000 crore (about $3 billion), it said on Thursday, as it aims to achieve net zero carbon emissions from its operations.

The state-owned miner has been diversifying beyond the polluting fuel, which is still key for the country's power needs, as a part of the wider national aim to achieve net zero carbon emissions by 2070.

The coal giant targets to supply clean energy through solar and wind energy projects to the upcoming green ammonia facilities of AM Green Ammonia (India). It did not give a date for building these projects.

AM Green, in which the founders of India's Greenko Group have large stakes, targets to produce 5 million tons per annum (MTPA) of green ammonia by 2030.

Coal India's clean energy projects come amid its drive to expand its coal-powered capacity, and at a time when electricity demand in the country has been increasing thanks to climate change and increasing industrialisation.

India aims to raise its coal-fired capacity by 80 gigawatts by 2031-32, from the current 222 GW, to meet growing demand for power, and, in parallel, the country is also aiming to add at least 500 GW of clean energy by 2030, against 172 GW currently.

However, India's renewable energy sector is grappling with several obstacles, including weak demand for tenders, land acquisition challenges, delays in power purchase agreements, and project cancellations.