Towards Better Coal Power Technology Policies

Coal-based power plants are—and will continue to be—the backbone of India’s energy engine. They currently account for about 69 out of 128-gigawatt installed capacity of utilities, and projections by the Planning Commission indicate that coal will fuel the power sector for at least the next three decades.

Given the primacy of coal, it is critical not only to consider and implement power generation technologies that meet the near-term needs of the country but also to set the coal power sector on a path that would allow it to respond better to future challenges. Current technology decisions are driven primarily by the urgent need to add more capacity to cope with demand. This has resulted in the deployment of the least risky and cheapest technology—sub-critical pulverised coal (PC)—especially since this technology offers a well-established manufacturing base, proven ability to use Indian coal, and relative ease of operations and maintenance. However, the need to increase capacity must be placed in the context of a longer-term strategy regarding future technological choices for the coal-power sector and the elements of a technology innovation programme to support this approach.

Longer-term challenges include rapid infrastructure development, energy security, local environment and social issues, and carbon mitigation. These challenges have specific implications for technology choices. For example, technologies must be commercially mature without much technological risks, in order to be rapidly deployed. They must be able to utilise domestic coal and/or be flexible enough to use other fuels such as biomass, petcoke, etc., in order to enhance the country’s energy security. Reducing local pollution requires high efficiency technologies with better pollution control equipment. Finally, although the timing and nature of carbon dioxide (CO2) emission targets for India are not yet clear, the sector must be prepared for reducing CO2 emissions in the long term, especially since coal power plants last 40–50 years. Hence, the development and demonstration of high-efficiency technologies that allow for low-cost capture of CO2 needs to be considered.

Meeting these challenges is complicated by several constraints in the Indian context. The poor quality of Indian coal and uncertainties about coal production and the extent of domestic coal reserves restrict technology choices. Limited financial resources imply that high-efficiency technologies with low capital costs will continue to be preferred. Technologies also need to be consonant with existing and future indigenous technical capacity, which is currently hampered by inadequate investment in domestic innovation. Finally, institutional and political issues such as lack of competition, dominance of government-owned enterprises, and lack of long-term technology planning constrain the development and deployment of new technologies.

At the same time, there are now a number of different technologies that can potentially help the coal power sector meet its goal of rapid capacity addition in a manner consistent with its other challenges. Advanced PC technologies, using supercritical steam and better pollution control equipment, are already commercial. Combustion with pure oxygen (oxyfuel combustion) instead of air is being developed for ease of carbon capture. Efforts are underway to commercialise coal gasification systems for electricity production and for converting coal into methanol, hydrogen, synthetic diesel, and other chemicals. However, standard entrained-flow gasifiers are not suitable for most Indian coals because of their poor quality, and instead, less-proven gasification technologies such as fluidised-bed gasifiers are necessary for utilising Indian coals.

The availability of these different and evolving technology options combined with the multiple challenges and constraints highlight the need for a systematic and careful technology assessment process for the sector. A first-step analysis suggests that commercial supercritical combustion technology is best suited for India in the short- to medium-term, while gasification and other advanced combustion technologies will be potentially important long-term options. Hence, the power sector should explore both gasification and advanced combustion pathways, and not make rigid technology choices now. In the meantime, it is important to improve the efficiency of existing sub-critical PC plants, while tightening and enforcing pollution control. As far as possible, only high-efficiency technologies such as supercritical PC and fluidised bed combustion should be deployed in the short- to medium-term.

A monitoring and feasibility assessment programme must be established to evaluate the appropriateness of emerging future technologies. Specific ‘no-regret’ elements of selected technologies can be advanced through a strategic technology innovation programme with international linkages, buttressed by a programme of domestic policy research. Finally, although India is not likely to commit any carbon constraints in the near term, it is critical to invest in a concerted effort to explore carbon storage opportunities with detailed geological feasibility studies for specific reservoirs. Such efforts will yield valuable information for India’s future carbon mitigation options, in addition to influencing future technology choices and power plant location decisions.

These suggestions need to be incorporated into a more comprehensive and detailed technology assessment process. The government should support this process by building consensus among decision makers and various stakeholders on a robust technology policy and domestic innovation strategy in the coal power sector.

—This article is based on research by Dr Ananth Chikkatur (research fellow) and Dr Ambuj Sagar (senior research associate) at the Belfer Centre for Science & International Affairs in Harvard’s Kennedy School of Government