COAL IN INDIA

WHY IN NEWS?

10^th round of Coal mines likely

BACKGROUND

Coal is one of the principal fossil fuels and is a primary source of energy and power. The term coal is generally applied to a sedimentary formation of highly carbonaceous in nature and is formed by the accumulation of previously existing plant material.

Coal is mostly carbon with variable amounts of other elements, chiefly hydrogen, sulfur, oxygen, and nitrogen

COAL GRADES

PRODUCTS OF COAL

COKE

Coke is made from coal by baking in an oven without oxygen at temperatures as high as 1,000 °C, driving off the volatile constituents and fusing together the fixed carbon and residual ash.

Coke is used in the manufacture of steel and in the extraction of many metals.

SYNGAS

A mixture of carbon monoxide and nitrogen produced by coal gasification

3C (as Coal) + O₂ + H₂O → H₂ + 3CO

Syngas can be converted to gasoline, methanol, used for production of ammonia etc.

COAL DISTRIBUTION IN INDIA

In India coal occurs in rock series of two main geological ages, namely Gondwana, a little over 200 million years in age and in tertiary deposits which are only about 55 million years

About 98% of coal in India is Gondwana coal and 2% tertiary coal.

GONDWANA COAL

JHARKAND

Jharia, Girdih, Bokaro

ORISSA

Talcher

CHATTISGARH

Korba

TELENGANA/ ANDHRAPRADESH

Singareni, Kothagudam

WESTBENGAL

Raniganj

MADHYA PRADESH

Singrauli, Umaria

TERTIARY COAL

Tertiary coals occur in the north eastern states of Meghalaya, Assam, Arunachal Pradesh and Nagaland

ASSAM

Makum coalfield in Sibsagar district is the most developed field.

ARUNACHAL PRADESH

Upper Assam Coal belt extends eastwards as Namchick-Namrup coalfield.

MEGHALAYA

Garo, Khasi and Jaintia hills.

LIGNITE

Almost 90% of the lignite reserves is located in Tamil Nadu, Neyveli

STATEWISE RESERVES

1.Jharkhand

STATEWISE PRODUCTION

1.Orissa registered highest coal production in 2022-23.

PRODUCTION

1. CHINA  46%
2. INDIA 9% (2017)

CONSUMPTION

1. CHINA more than 50%
2. INDIA around 10%

 In 2021, China and India already accounted for two-thirds of global consumption, meaning together they used twice as much coal as the rest of the world combined.

IMPORTS

1. CHINA
2. INDIA

EXPORTER

1. INDONESIA
2. AUSTRALIA