Cement, Energy and Environment

) NEED FOR A FAIR PRICING SYSTEM FOR OIL, GAS & COAL, SAYS CHATURVEDI With global energy prices staying high, Planning Commission member BK Chaturvedi said there should be a fair pricing system for oil, gas and coal. Speaking at the India Energy Congress on Friday, he said: "Energy prices need to be gradually aligned with the international market. " With government increasing power tariffs and price of regulated fuels , the official said: "India is a highly price-sensitive market, pricing of coal is a major issue for the power sector. We should ensure that the input cost does not become so high that output price becomes highly uncompetitive." According to estimates, India imports about 80% of oil, 30% of gas and about 25% of coal. Emphasizing on the need for raising domestic fuel prices, Planning Commission deputy chairman Montek Singh Ahluwalia earlier said that diesel, liquefied petroleum gas (LPG), coal and natural gas are under priced in India. "I ndian coal is under-priced; some part of coal is sold through auction and the auction price is 30- 40% higher. If this under-pricing is not altered then, incentives to invest have to be maintained by giving budgetary sops, which is simply not feasible," he said. Courtesy: The Financial Express, New Delhi, Feb. 09,2013 SERIOUS COAL CRISIS AHEAD FOR MANY STATES IF RAIL LINES ARE NOT LAID Sounding a strong warning, including severe shortage of coal for thermal power plants, the Coal Ministry has predicted serious implications for the southern States of Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu and Karnataka and many northern and western States if important railway lines connecting coal fields in Jharkhand, Orissa and Chhattisgarh are not completed in the next three years. In a note to the Ministry of Environment and Forests and Railways, the Coal Ministry has stated that it would not be possible for the State-run Coal India Limited (CIL) to achieve either the targeted production of 615 million tonnes of coal by 2016-17 or any incremental coal production during the 12 Five Year Plan if the railway tracks in these three coal producing States are not put in place in the next three years. 'If the incremental production from Mahanadi coalfie lds does not materialize, the three States of Andhra Pradesh , Tamil Nadu and Karnataka would suffer heavily. Likewise, if the unexpected incremental coal does not come from Jharkhand, all northern States would face severe coal shortage, even at the existing thermal power plants. Western States like Rajasthan, Maharashtra and Gujurat will suffer if the proposed raiwaly line in Chhattisgarh does not materialize," the note has stated. The rail lines include the Tori-Shivpur– Kathotia (Hazaribagh) BG triple line for the North Karanpura coalfield likely to carry 167 metric tonnes of coal per annum; the Jharsuguda-Barpali BG double line for 18 Valley coalfield and Shupdeopur-Korichapar/Broaud-Dharamjaygarh up to Korba and Gevra Road to Pendra Road in Mand Raigarh coalfiels; and double line BG for Mand-Raigarh coalfield. The Mand Raigharh coalfield also holds a potential of 100 mt per annum and the lb and Talcher coalfields hold a potential of about 90 mt per annum. The matter has also been brought to the notice of the Prime Minister's Office (PMO) , which has already taken note of the situation and held a meeting to fast track the construction of these railway tracks. The note states that implementation of the above three railway lines could help in enhancing coal production by about 300 mt, which would meet the growing requirements of thermal coal. In addition of this, it states, the Railways will be able to generate about Rs. 10,000 crore per annum as freight revenue from the incremental coal produced from these coalfields and the State governments would get additional revenue to the tune of Rs. 2,000 crore per annum in the form of royalty and VAT. Courtesy: The Hindu, New Delhi, January 17, 2013 Renewable Energy RENEWABLE ENERGY IN INDIA There has been consistent increase in the pace of renewable energy development and the sector has grown at an annual rate of 23 per cent rising from about 3900 MW in 2002-2003 to about 26,137 MW in September 2012. Wind energy continues to dominate India's renewable energy industry, accounting for 70 per cent of installed capacity (18,192 MW), followed by small hydropower (3,447 MW), biomass power (3,359 MW) and solar power (1 045 MW). In terms of electricity generation, with normative capacity 3 1