NEW DELHI: Coal India Ltd, the world’s biggest coal miner and India’s single-largest greenhouse gas emitter, has become the latest Indian entity to enter the renewables covenant by pledging Rs 5,650 crore for building 3,000 MW (megawatt) of solar power projects as part of a plan to become net-zero energy company by 2023-24.
The state-run behemoth’s solar foray is part of the Narendra Modi government’s larger strategy for meeting – rather exceeding – the commitment made at the Paris climate meet, or COP-21, to reduce India’s carbon footprint.
A dataset released by US-based Climate Accountability Institute in December 2019 ranked Coal India eighth among the top 20 companies responsible for global carbon emissions from 1965-2017.
A million unit (MU) of solar power generation brings down Co2 emissions by a little over 700 tonnes. By this calculation, reducing the economy’s carbon footprint without hitting growth is a big challenge. Roughly 55% of electricity in the country comes from coal-fired power stations, even though renewables now account for a quarter of the 3,73,436 MW installed capacity.
