7 Coal Gasification Project to Come up with Rs 64K Cr Investment: Kishan Reddy
New Delhi: Coal and Mines Minister G Kishan Reddy on Monday informed the Rajya Sabha that seven coal gasification projects in Maharashtra, Odisha and West Bengal will come up with an investment of Rs 64,000 crore and said this will help reduce imports of energy products.
Answering additional questions during Question Hour, the minister emphasized that the Modi government has brought many reforms in the coal sector in the last 12 years. Reddy said the coal blocks were allocated through a transparent auction process without any complaints or claims.
“There is no shortage of power in the country,” he said, adding that 73-74 per cent of electricity is being generated through coal-based thermal plants.
The Minister said that 80 percent of coal production is supplied to the energy sector and the rest to other sectors. Reddy underlined that India is the second largest producer and consumer of coal.
He said the country has the fifth largest coal reserves that can last for at least 70 years and that is why the government is increasing exploration activities. Reddy said the government has also started coal gasification activities.
“Seven projects are about to start. The groundbreaking ceremony for four projects has been initiated. The total investment is Rs 64,000 crore,” the minister said, adding that the Center has given incentives to these projects. Of the seven projects, four are in Maharashtra, two in Odisha and one in West Bengal.
He said coal gasification converts coal into syngas, which can also be used to produce methanol, ammonia, urea, hydrogen, synthetic natural gas (SNG), petrochemicals and liquid fuels.
“We can reduce import dependency through gasification,” said Reddy, adding that this would save foreign exchange and increase employment.
In his written response, the Minister said that 21 coal blocks out of 131 coal blocks allocated within the scope of the Commercial Coal Mining Policy received permission to open mines, and 12 coal blocks started production as of February 28, 2026.
