Report by the Organized Crime and Corruption Reporting Project (OCCRP):
The OCCRP, supported by billionaire hedge fund manager and philanthropist George Soros, released a report with new documents.
The report alleges that in 2014, the Adani Group mislabeled 'low grade' coal imported from Indonesia as 'high-quality' coal.
This mislabeling allegedly inflated the coal's value, which was then sold to Tamil Nadu's power generation company, TANGEDCO (Tamil Nadu Generation and Distribution Company).
OCCRP is a global network of investigative journalists with staff on six continents. It was founded in 2006 and specializes in organized crime and corruption.
What is ‘High Grade’ and ‘Low Grade’ Coal?
High and low quality coal are relative terms, meaningful only in specific contexts of use and processing.
Gross Calorific Value (GCV) measures the heat or energy generated from burning coal, determining its gradation.
Coal is a fossil fuel composed of carbon, ash, moisture, and other impurities.
Higher carbon content indicates higher quality or grade of coal.
There are 17 grades of coal.
Grade 1 (top quality) yields more than 7,000 kcal/kg.
Lowest grade yields between 2,200-2,500 kcal/kg.
Uses of Coal:
Coking Coal: Used to produce coke, essential for steel making, requiring minimal ash content.
Non-Coking Coal: Used to generate heat for running boilers and turbines despite higher ash content.
Characteristics of Indian Coal
High ash content, low calorific value.
Imported coal has Higher calorific value (+6,000 kcal/kg), lower ash content (<10%).
High-ash Indian coal results in higher particulate matter, nitrogen, and sulphur dioxide emissions when burned.
Since 1954, the Indian government has controlled coal prices to disincentivize the use of high-grade coking coal for power generation.
The Central Electricity Authority (CEA) recommended 10-15% blending of imported coal in Indian power boilers designed for low-quality Indian coal.
What is Clean Coal?
Clean coal has increased carbon content with reduced ash content.
Coal plants have ‘washing plants’ on site which can process the coal in ways that reduce ash and moisture content.
On-site washing plants use blowers or baths to remove fine and coarse ash.
This process is expensive, adding to the cost of power.
Other method to clean coal s Coal Gasification
It Converts coal into gas, avoiding direct burning.
Integrated Gasification Combined Cycle (IGCC) system Combines steam and hot pressurized air or oxygen with coal.
Produces syngas (carbon monoxide, hydrogen, CO2, water vapor).
Syngas is cleaned and burned in a gas turbine to produce electricity.
IGCC increases the efficiency of coal usage by producing two forms of energy.
Future of Coal in India
India produced 997 million tonnes of coal in 2023-24, an 11% growth from the previous year.
Most coal is produced by state-owned Coal India Ltd and its subsidiaries.
As of March 2024, India produced 261 million tonnes of coal, including 58 million tonnes of coking coal.
Despite commitments to move away from fossil fuels, coal remains central to India's energy economy.
In early 2024, renewable energy accounted for 71.5% of the 13.6 GW power generation capacity added.
Coal's share of total power capacity dropped below 50% for the first time since the 1960s.
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