Coal India has reportedly announced plans to set up clean energy projects with a capacity of approximately 4.5GW, with an investment of around Rs250bn ($3bn), according to a report by Reuters.
The move is part of the state-owned company’s strategy to achieve net-zero carbon emissions from its operations.
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The company is shifting focus from coal, despite its current significance to India’s energy requirements, aligning with the nation’s broader objective to reach net-zero carbon emissions by 2070.
Coal India plans to supply solar and wind energy to the forthcoming green ammonia facilities of AM Green Ammonia (India). The company has not specified a timeline for the completion of these projects.
AM Green, which has strong backing from the founders of India’s Greenko Group, has set a target to produce five million tonnes per annum of green ammonia by 2030.
The collaboration with Coal India is expected to further bolster the country’s clean energy prospects.
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By GlobalDataDespite Coal India’s foray into renewable energy, the company continues to expand its coal-powered capacity to meet burgeoning electricity demand driven by climate change impacts and industrial growth.
India’s plan includes increasing its coal-fired capacity by 80GW by 2031–32 from the current 222GW, while simultaneously aiming to add at least 500GW of clean energy by 2030, up from the present 172GW.
The renewable energy sector in India, however, faces several challenges such as subdued demand for tenders, hurdles in land acquisition, delays in power purchase agreements and project cancellations, which could impede the growth of clean energy initiatives.
In a related development, Coal India recently entered a non-binding memorandum of understanding with Damodar Valley to establish a 1.6GW coal-fired power plant in Jharkhand through a joint venture company.
