Coal ministry to draw scheme for coal gasification projects worth Rs 6,000 cr

economictimes.indiatimes.com:

coal gasification projects for both government Public Sector Undertakings (PSUs) and the private sector with an outlay of Rs 6,000 crores. It has set a target to achieve coal gasification of 100 Million Tonne (MT) coal by FY 2030 to reduce India's reliance on imports of natural gas, methanol, ammonia and other essential products. «Currently, India imports approximately 50% of its Natural Gas, over 90% of its total Methanol consumption and around 13-15% of its total ammonia consumption to cater to the domestic demand.

The implementation of coal gasification is expected to make significant contributions to the nation's development by reducing imports by 2030,» the ministry said in a release. The scheme will be drawn in three segments to provide budgetary support to eligible companies, both PSUs and private entities, the release said. While the first segment will cater to government-owned entities, the second one will pertain to both private and public sector undertakings.

The third segment encompasses to companies utilizing indigenous technology along with small-scale product-based gasification plants. Further, the ministry is also considering an incentive to reimburse the Goods and Services Tax (GST) compensation cess on coal utilized in gasification projects pertaining to certain terms and conditions. With this incentive, the government aims to balance the inability of entities to claim input tax credit for the same.