Coal India Expands Beyond Coal into Gasification, Renewables, Storage & Critical Minerals

New Delhi, Sep 21 (KNN) Coal India Limited (CIL) is expanding beyond coal mining into coal gasification, thermal power, renewable energy, battery storage, critical minerals, advanced materials and research and development (R&D).

CIL’s portfolio includes four coal-to-chemicals projects with a combined estimated investment of around Rs69,346 crore. These include projects for urea, ammonium nitrate and synthetic natural gas (SNG). 

The company is also pursuing a proposed 2×800 MW ultra-supercritical power expansion at Chandrapura, Jharkhand, through a proposed 50:50 joint venture with Damodar Valley Corporation.

CIL has commissioned around 550 MW of solar capacity and is developing additional rooftop, ground-mounted and captive projects. It is also developing a 20 MW floating solar project at Chilwa Taal in Gorakhpur.

In battery storage, CIL has been awarded the 187.5 MW/750 MWh TGGENCO Choutuppal project in Telangana. It is also developing an 80 MW/320 MWh battery storage portfolio across four locations in Odisha, for which the EPC tender has been issued.

The company is examining graphite assets in Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh and rare earth element and rare-metal opportunities in Andhra Pradesh and Maharashtra. 

It is also working with the Non-Ferrous Technology Development Centre on a demonstration plant for coated spherical purified graphite with a proposed purity of at least 99.95 per cent.

CIL’s R&D portfolio comprises 20 projects with an approved outlay of Rs231 crore. R&D expenditure stood at Rs183.88 crore in FY 2025-26, while planned expenditure is Rs225 crore for FY 2026-27. 

Key projects include underground coal gasification, 5G networks for mines, perovskite solar cells and AI-based exploration for critical minerals.

During FY 2026-27, CIL has filed five patents, with two more under process, while one patent for bifacial perovskite solar cells has been granted.

(KNN Bureau)