Bhubaneswar: A recent international conference in Bhubaneswar underscored the commercial value of coal gasification, positioning it as vital to achieving India’s goal of self-reliance under Atmanirbhar Bharat.
The gathering, focused on challenges, opportunities and emerging technologies in coal gasification, drew strong participation from leading Indian companies including Coal India, Mahanadi Coalfields, Southeastern Coalfields, GAIL, NTPC and Jindal Steel, along with a delegation from Sri Lanka and technical specialists from Canada.
Organised by the Coal Gasifiers Association of India (CGAI), the country’s principal professional body for the sector, the event highlighted how India’s abundant domestic coal reserves, combined with financial support available through the Ministry of Coal’s Viability Gap Funding scheme, can underpin large-scale adoption of the technology.
More than 25 experts presented papers examining practical solutions for utilising high-ash Indian coal and developing local manufacturing routes for strategic chemicals that currently rely on imports. Representatives from NTPC and Jindal Steel outlined ongoing projects that directly support the goal of reducing external dependence.
A central feature of the programme was a site visit arranged by CGAI to Jindal Steel’s Anugola works, home to India’s first coal-gasification-based Direct Reduced Iron (CGP-DRI) plant. Delegates toured the facility, which produces high-quality steel from coal-derived syngas, and observed the country’s largest blast furnace together with other advanced production units that form part of the plant’s continuing expansion.
Participants noted the integration of efficiency measures and sustainability practices that place the Anugola complex among India’s most modern steelmaking sites.
Prominent figures at the conference included Sanjay Singh, Advisor to Jindal Steel and President of CGAI; Dr A.K. Balyan, General Secretary; Kapil Dhagat, Vice-President and coal-gasification specialist; and R K Singhal, Director of Business Development at GAIL. Former Chief Secretary of Odisha, Asit Tripathy, attended as Chief Guest.
