Coal India (CIL) has given concrete shape to its coal gasification/coal-to-chemical plans, making its foray into the segment. CIL has partnered BHEL to set up a joint venture, Bharat Coal Gasification and Chemicals (BCGCL), which aims to produce close to 6,60,000 tonne of ammonium nitrate from CIL’s coal mines. The plant will come up in the Lakhanpur area of Mahanadi Coalfields (MCL), Odisha, and will produce 2,000 tonne of AN per day with annual production pegged at 6,60,000 tonne.

Around 350 acres of land in the Lakhanpur area under the MCL zone in Jharsuguda district has been earmarked for the project. The project will span across four stages, with BHEL receiving the tender for coal gasification, air separation unit (ASU), ash handling plant, CHP, and cooling towers on a nomination basis.

The requirement of around 1.3 million tonne of coal will be supplied by CIL from MCL. Vasundhara coal mine of MCL is one of the identified mines for the project. The total project cost is estimated to be around Rs 11,782 crore, with Rs 1,350 crore allocated for the preparation of a detailed feasibility report (DFR). 

In addition, BCGCL has also floated a second tender for the ‘coal to ammonium nitrate’ project, and further stages of the project will be executed through additional tenders. LSTK-2 and LSTK-3 packages will cover the purification of raw gas, synthesis of ammonia, and storage of liquid nitrogen, and LSTK-4 package will focus on the production of nitric acid and ammonium nitrate. CIL has another JV with GAIL for setting up a coal-to-SNG project at Sonepur Bazari area of Eastern Coalfields (ECL) in Burdwan district, West Bengal. A detailed feasibility report is also in progress.