A file image of coal gasification plant.
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The Coal Ministry informed Tuesday that it has received seven applications seeking the financial support for setting up of coal gasification projects in the country.In a statement, the ministry elaborated that it received three applications from Adani Enterprises for setting up coal-to-urea gasification plants, one from Shyam Sel & Power Limited for producing syngas, one from Gallantt Ispat Ltd for direct reduced iron and syngas.It had earlier informed that NTPC Ltd and Talcher Fertilisers (TFL) too had put forth applications. The state-owned power distributor is seeking to produce synthetic natural gas whilst TFL too has applied for a urea gasification plant.The applications would now be evaluated in accordance with guidelines of the scheme.Further, with the conclusion of the first round, the second round of the rolling window for applications commenced Sept 8.G. Kishan Reddy, Union Minister for Coal and Mines termed the now-concluded window as a success.Speaking to the press, he said, “The second window [of the rolling application system] commences today. A good number of companies applied in the first phase, and we expect that more companies would turn in the second phase.”The Coal Ministry had stated earlier in the day that several prospective applicants were presently at “advanced stages of project preparation” to submit proposals in subsequent windows.According to Atanu Mukherjee, CEO at the energy engineering and advisory company Dastur Energy, carving sustainable project economics would essay an important role in the next phase. He underlined that gasification projects, are capital intensive, and their bankability depends on technology suited to Indian coal, scale, long-term product offtake and competitive financing, among other things. “The government’s incentive framework can help absorb some of the early-stage risk, but ultimately these projects will have to demonstrate sustainable returns without being permanently dependent on subsidy,” he said. The Union Cabinet had on May 13 approved a ₹37,500 crore package aimed at promoting surface coal and lignite gasification in the country. The request for proposal (RfP) was subsequently issued, with the current application window closing on September 7. India has a target of gasifying 100 million tonnes (MT) of coal by 2030. The May 13 package builds further on an earlier ₹8,500 crore package that saw eight projects being given a nod which are presently at varied stages of implementation. Talcher Fertiliser’s coal-based ammonia and urea complex would be the first of them – scheduled for commissioning in fiscal year 2027-28. Published - September 08, 2026 03:47 pm IST
