Thermal plant emissions: Wait for cleaner power may get longer
The agenda for installing pollution reducing equipment at coal-based power plants, already facing challenges, has to reckon with an apparent disruption of the supply chain following the ban on import of power equipment from China. Taken together with the reluctance of lenders to inject more capital in the stress-ridden sector and the uncertainty over its impact on power tariffs, this means the Centre’s 2022 deadline for installing flue gas de-sulphurisation (FGD) units in plants with a capacity of 1,65,942 MW is likely to be missed.
In fact, about 75% of these plants are yet to award contracts for the purpose though it takes about 30 months to commission such a project, which reduces sulphur dioxide emissions.
