India has a total of 293 closed, abandoned or discontinued coal mines.
The abandoned mines are currently used for dumping fly ash, afforestation, pisciculture or are developed as eco parks.
The UK, which has many abandoned coal mines, has now started to make use of these mines' geothermal energy, said a BBC report.
With the help of a few geothermal experts from Iceland, an RE enthusiast Adam Black sunk a borehole into the murky depths of coal seam in Gateshead, Tyne and Wear, England, said the BBC.
The water they pumped to the surface was a pleasant 15C (59F) and could be heated further with a little assistance from heat pumps.
BBC
Britain is using this water to meet one of its biggest energy needs — heating homes.
BBC
An estimated 2 billion cubic metres of warm water occupy the old mine shafts in the UK, say geologists.
The UK’s abandoned coal mines could well prove to be a useful source of geothermal energy.