Coal India and Bharat Petroleum sign MoU to assess a coal-to-synthetic natural gas project

Two Maharatna public sector enterprises, Coal India Limited (CIL) and Bharat Petroleum Corporation Limited (BPCL), have inked a non-binding Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to investigate the viability of starting a coal-to-synthetic natural gas (SNG) project. In Mumbai, the MoU was signed on December 2, 2024.

Surface coal gasification technology will be used in the project, which is being proposed at Western Coalfields Limited (WCL). By converting coal into synthetic natural gas, this novel technology broadens the uses of coal beyond its traditional use and provides a greener energy option.

It is anticipated that the MoU will lay the groundwork for additional technical and financial analyses to determine whether the coal-to-SNG project is feasible. More than 80% of the nation’s domestic coal production comes from CIL, whose output increased 1.7% in November to 67.2 MT from 66 MT in the same month the year before.