Coal India NSE 0.47 % is in talks with Gail India and IOC for joint ventures to develop coal bed methane fields and sell the product. Coal India has already lined up investments to the tune of Rs 3,000 crore for its methane projects.
The joint ventures are also likely to enable Coal India inject coal bed methane into the proposed Urja Ganga gas pipeline that aims to meet energy requirements of 40 districts and 2,600 villages covering Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Jharkhand, Odisha and West Bengal.
In June last year, the Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs had waived the requirement for procuring separate licences from the ministry of petroleum and natural gas for taking up coal bed methane projects on its lease hold areas.
Following the development, the world’s largest coal producer lined up two coal bed methane projects at an estimated investment of Rs 3,000 crore.
The first project will be undertaken by Coal India subsidiary, Bharat Coking Coal, at Jharia coalfields in Jharkhand. This block is estimated to hold methane reserves of 25 billion cubic meters and is expected to start production two years after the project is initiated.
The second project at Ranigunj in West Bengal is to be undertaken by Eastern Coalfields. The block holds around 3 billion cubic meter of coal bed methane that can be viably extracted and sold.
