First ambitious project of Coal Bed Methane in Jharia cleared, gas will reach kitchens across the country
Ranchi (IANS). The first ambitious project of coal bed methane gas production in Jharkhand’s Dhanbad has got environmental clearance. The cost of the project is Rs 1,880 crore.
Coal India’s associate company BCCL (Bharat Coking Coal Limited) and outsourcing company Prabha Energy Pvt. Ltd. as a joint venture, the project will be in a position to start production in the next few months.
This project is being started at Jharia in Moonidih area of BCCL. BCCL’s Gujarat company Prabha Energy Pvt Ltd for methane production and distribution from CBM (Coal Bed Methane)-1 located here. A 30-year agreement has been signed with
The gas coming out of here will be transported to other parts of the country through GAIL’s Urja Ganga pipeline. It will be used for power generation, cooking gas and fuel for vehicles.
GAIL’s Urja Ganga pipeline has been laid at a distance of 8 km from Munidih. BCCL has spent Rs 368.58 crore and outsourcing company Rs 1510.5 crore in this project.
Overall, the project is worth Rs 1,880 crore. Production of CBM has not yet started in any other company of Coal India other than BCCL.
It has been told that the CBM project will be implemented in three phases.
The first phase will include exploration and the second phase will include pilot evaluation and market survey. The third phase will consist of development and production for a maximum period of 30 years or till the economic life of the field.
BCCL CMD Samiran Dutta said methane gas coming out of some other underground mines in the area would be connected to the Pradhan Mantri Ganga Urja pipeline.
He said that the production and marketing of methane would not only increase the revenue of the company, this project would also prove to be very important in meeting the energy related challenges. Exploitation of methane will not only reduce gas leakage and accidents in the mines, it will also increase the revenue of the company.
The central government has approved the plan for methane gas production from coal mines in Munidih (Jharia) and Gomia and North Karanpura areas of Jharkhand.
For the commercial production of methane, in the first phase, the central government has identified 15 blocks of coal bed methane with an area of eight and a half thousand square kilometers in six states. Three of these blocks are in Jharkhand. Their area is 503.11 sq km.
The target is to produce 50 billion cubic meters of gas from CBM (Coal Bed Methane) by 2023-24. Explain that methane is a natural gas. It is found deep in the ground. Especially it is found in coal mines. This is called coal bed methane.
In Jharkhand, reserves of 1.6 million cubic meters of methane gas have been detected in Dhanbad, Ramgarh and Bokaro. Along with Coal India Limited, ONGC is also working on its production and exploitation projects.
