Coal phase-down to increase India's import of critical minerals: Economic Survey

New Delhi: Asserting that coal will continue to be the backbone of India’ energy mix for the next two decades, the Economic Survey 2024-25 said that a phase-down of coal will increase India’s critical mineral imports unless the country develops technologies that are based in domestically available minerals and that enable recycling, recovery and reuse of critical minerals. Quoting a study titled ‘Synchronizing energy transitions toward possible Net Zero for India: Affordable and clean energy for all’ conducted by the Indian Institute of Management (IIM) Ahmedabad, the survey said that a phase-down of coal will require investments in renewable energy and battery energy storage.

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“Coal phase-down will be heavily dependent on the import of critical minerals required for renewable energy and battery storage unless the country invests in the development of technologies based on domestically available mineral resources and those that enable the reuse, recovery, and recycling of critical minerals,” said the survey.

Coal will continue to be backbone of India’s energy system for 2 decades

Stating that the India’s primary energy mix in 2022-23 was fossil fuel dominant, with coal, oil and natural gas comprising 84 percent of the mix, the Economic Survey 2024-25 said that coal will continue to be the backbone of India’s energy system for the next two decades. It said that renewable energy and nuclear power are expected to be the predominant sources of energy only by 2070.

“Coal is projected to continue until the next two decades as the backbone of the Indian energy system. Although technologies such as Carbon Dioxide Removal technologies (CDRs), such as Bioenergy with CO2 Capture & Storage (BECCS), and CCUS need to be explored to reduce the emissions from the use of coal. However, the energy penalty for deploying BECCS/CCUS at power plants would need a closer examination,” said the survey.

It further said the adoption of gasification technology in India can transform the coal sector and bring down the dependence on the import of natural gas, methanol, and ammonia, and will help lower emissions. “Adopting gasification technology in India can revolutionise the coal sector, reducing reliance on imports of natural gas, methanol, ammonia, and other essential products while reducing emissions,” said the survey. “ Initiatives such as extracting Coal Bed Methane (CBM) gases, exploring coal to hydrogen, Carbon Capture and Storage (CCS), and coal beneficiation through washeries, etc. can mitigate emissions and enhance environmental sustainability,” said the survey.

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