India cancels four major new coal plants in move to end imports

IndiaCoalDrought

The Indian Energy Ministry has this week announced plans to cancel four proposed coal-fired power plants with a combined capacity of 16 gigawatts (GW).

The plans previously called for four ultra mega power plants (UMPP) across Chhattisgarh, Karnataka, Maharashtra and Odisha, but these are now to be cancelled due to lack of interest from the host states.

This is yet another major policy shift underscoring how seriously India is working to transform, modernize and diversify its electricity sector away from coal.

For eight years, these four proposed plants remained in the planning, preparation and land acquisition stage. However, community resistance to compulsory land acquisition and forced resettlement combined with electricity power surpluses to push the government to issue a cancellation order.

Moreover, two of the UMPPs (8GW) were planned for coastal locations, aimed to run on imported coal. As such, the announcement is in line with Indian Energy Minister Piyush Goyal target of eliminating thermal coal imports into India.

His motivation in eliminating thermal imports is to drive delivered cost of electricity down, reduce the current account burden, improve energy security and the straight out lack of need in light of increased domestic production.

April 2016 coal imports fell 15% year on year.

To operate, these four UMPPs would have required upwards of a total of 46 million tonnes per annum of coal (approx. 12Mtpa per plant), half of which was to have been imported.

For 2016/17, the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE) has set the highest ever capacity addition target for the clean power sector, that being up to 16,660 megawatts (MW). Of this, the solar installs target is set at 12GW, wind at 4GW, biomass power at 400MW, small scale hydro-electricity at 250MW and waste-to-power at 10MW.

India is increasingly looking to source its incremental electricity needs from the combined expansions of renewable energy, as well dampening demand growth by accelerating energy and grid efficiency programs. With the utilization rates of the average coal fired power plant at six year lows of 58% in 2015/16 (down from 75% in 2010), another government goal is to better utilize the existing thermal capacity.

At this stage Indian Energy Minister Piyush Goyal is still persevering with plans for three new UMPP that, if awarded, would add a combined 12GW of new coal fired power generation capacity across Cheyyur in Tamil Nadu, Behabahal in Odisha & Banka in Bihar by 2020.

While the awarding of these projects has already also been repeatedly delayed, these three UMPPs would facilitate the proposed closure of old coal-fired power plants that are now beyond their use by date.

In May 2016, S.D. Dubey, chairman of the Central Electricity Authority, announced the plans to close up to 37GW of antiquated, heavily polluting subcritical coal plants, stating: “Our first concern is emissions … We also want plants to be more efficient in use of resources.” This 37GW is equal to 20% of India’s current coal fired power fleet, or 12% of the total system capacity of 303GW.

In April 2016 the Power Ministry announced it had scaled back its projected thermal power capacity growth forecast by 50GW, reducing the target from 289GW to 239GW by 2022.India currently has a thermal power capacity of 211GW.As a result, the Power Ministry said in June 2016 it would not need any new thermal capacity for the next three years beyond what was already under construction.

This week, S&P Global Platts forecast that India’s reliance on coal fired power generation would drop from an estimated 69% share in 2020 to just 60% by 2030,relative to a peak of 75% in 2015. IEEFA expects this to be achieved as early as 2025.

The government message is clear, consistent and compelling. In his address to the U.S. Congress this week, Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi clearly articulated that in the focus on driving Indian economic growth at 7.6% pa, this must “be achieved with a light carbon foot print, with greater emphasis on renewables.”In his meeting with President Obama, Prime Minister Modi also confirmed India will ratify the Paris Climate Agreement this year.

Tim Buckley is Director of Energy Finance Studies at the Institute for Energy Economics and Financial Analysis (IEEFA).

Comments

11 responses to “India cancels four major new coal plants in move to end imports”

  1. Brunel Avatar
    Brunel

    Mixed news. 12GW of new coal power stations – wonder if they are designed to run on imported coal.

    Given how cheap solar power is in Dubai – US 3c/kWh – Mr Goyal should be trying to build such cheap solar power stations in India.

    1. david_fta Avatar
      david_fta

      wonder if they are designed to run on imported coal.

      not if the article’s emphasis on Indian govt intention to end dependence on coal imports has any veracity.

    2. Tim Buckley Avatar
      Tim Buckley

      One of the three remaining proposed UMPP was designed for imported coal, but the legislation has yet to go to Cabinet as to whether India even puts this project plan out to tender. Meanwhile, India is building solar as fast as it can. From 1GW in 2014/15, they installed 3GW in 2015/16 and are now looking to more than treble this again in 2016/17. So Goyal gets it – build solar and wind as fast as he can, and drive long term deflationary trends into the Indian electricity sector. It is an straight of economics and energy security.

      1. ID635 Avatar
        ID635

        Yeah he gets to, doubling of coal demand over the next 10 years as well.

        500mtpa now to 900mtpa in 2016. More than enough demand to justify development of the adani Carmichael project.

        1. Tim Buckley Avatar
          Tim Buckley

          Troll?

          1. ID635 Avatar
            ID635

            No. Stating facts, something that you seem unfamiliar with

    3. nakedChimp Avatar
      nakedChimp

      According to this
      http://articles.economictimes.indiatimes.com/2016-01-06/news/69564083_1_odisha-umpp-power-minister-piyush-goyal-tilaiya-umpp
      one of them (others aren’t detailed like that) would have gotten coal from a local mine.
      I’d assume the others are too.
      The responsible Minister want’s to have zero imports.

      1. Alastair Leith Avatar
        Alastair Leith

        land displacement for mines, plants, economic tax free zones (hello China) and dams to supply all the water are all hugely contentious political issues in India. no easy answers, except more distributed energy generation and storage 🙂

  2. phred01 Avatar
    phred01

    Coal exports to India looks to be nixed

  3. Jon Albiez Avatar
    Jon Albiez

    India struggles with massive transmission and distribution losses, as well as significant power theft. Address these and new plant may very well not be required for a while.

    1. Alastair Leith Avatar
      Alastair Leith

      that energy theft is probably providing half of india with the two hours of electrical power a day they receive. not so sure reducing that demand is humane. i guess with rampant corruption corporate theft is also a possibility.

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