Govt sets Jan schedule for first pact signing of coal-gasification projects

The coal ministry has issued the final RFP under its Rs 37,500 crore coal gasification scheme, targeting the signing of project agreements by January 4, 2027

The government’s ₹37,500 crore scheme to promote projects on surface-coal and lignite gasification has got a move on, with the Ministry of Coal issuing the final “Request for Proposal” (RFP) for selecting companies. 

This has set in motion the first round of project selection with the signing of agreements scheduled to take place by January 4 next year. 

According to the RFP, issued on July 7, the ministry has laid down a fixed timeline for the first bidding round, beginning with a pre-application conference on July 20 and concluding with the signing of project agreements in early January next year. 

The timeline comes after the ministry recently completed investor roadshows across multiple cities to attract interest in setting up coal-gasification projects. 

The ministry has invited queries from prospective applicants until July 25 and will issue responses by August 3. Applications will close on September 7, following which they will be opened on September 8. 

The ministry is planning to declare the selected applicants on October 21 and issue “Letters of Award” on November 4. 

The successful applicants will then have 60 days to sign the “Coal Gasification Plant Development and Production Agreement”, with January 4 set as the target date for executing the agreements. 

The ministry said these timelines were tentative and subject to change. 

The scheme aims to accelerate the implementation of the projects through financial incentives, reduce import dependence on chemicals and petrochemicals, promote value-added utilisation of domestic coal, and contribute to the national target of 100 million tonnes of coal gasification by 2030. 

Under the RFP, projects will be selected through a competitive evaluation process based on parameters including the financial incentive sought, plant capacity, project cost per tonne of coal, technology tieups and the financial strength of the applicant. Only projects securing a minimum qualifying score of 40 will be eligible for selection, subject to the availability of funds. 

The scheme provides financial incentives of up to 20 per cent of the cost of plant and machinery. However, the incentive for an individual project has been capped at ₹5,000 crore, while a single applicant, including its group companies, cannot receive more than ₹12,000 crore across all approved projects.