India is reassessing its decade-old $30 billion program mandating coal plants to install sulphur-cutting equipment, following government-backed studies indicating minimal effectiveness in reducing pollution.
NEW DELHI, December 2024— India’s decade-long, $30 billion program to curb sulphur emissions from coal-fired power plants is now under review, signaling a shift in its environmental strategy. Once hailed as a cornerstone of the country’s efforts to combat pollution, the initiative has achieved minimal progress, with just 8% of targeted power plants adopting the mandated flue-gas desulphurization (FGD) systems. The government is now considering a less costly alternative, casting doubt on the viability of its original plan.
RELEVANT SUSTAINABLE GOALS
The Broken Promise of Flue-Gas Desulphurization
At the heart of the issue lies a fundamental question: Was the massive investment in FGDs ever justified? Indian coal, which powers 92% of the country’s thermal energy, has a sulphur content of only 0.5%—far below the levels found in other countries such as China, where FGD technology is commonplace. Government-backed studies, including those from the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Delhi and the National Environmental Engineering Research Institute, reveal that FGDs have had negligible impact on air quality in India.
“There was really never any case for having FGDs in every thermal power plant in the country,” said R. Srikanth, head of the engineering school at the National Institute of Advanced Studies (NIAS). “All our cities actually suffer from high particulate-matter pollution, not from sulphur dioxide pollution.”
Instead of investing in expensive FGD systems, which cost approximately ₹12 million ($141,000) per megawatt of capacity, the government is now exploring locally produced electrostatic precipitators. These systems target particulate matter, a more pressing issue for Indian cities, and come at just one-fifth the cost of FGDs.
A November meeting chaired by Ajay Kumar Sood, Principal Scientific Advisor to the government, concluded that prioritizing particulate matter reduction over sulphur emissions would yield better results. The document summarizing the meeting stated that particulate pollution, which can lodge deep in the lungs and cause serious health issues, is a far more significant concern for India than sulphur dioxide.
Delays and Deadlines: A Program in Limbo
India’s struggle to implement FGD systems reflects deeper challenges in balancing its environmental goals with economic realities. The original deadline for FGD installation was set for 2017, later extended to 2026, and now could be pushed to 2029. High costs, reliance on foreign technology, and operational disruptions—plants must shut down for up to 45 days to install FGDs—have stalled progress.
More than 200 FGDs remain uninstalled, with companies like NTPC and JSW Power reluctant to comply. Environmental groups, however, warn against abandoning the mandate, citing India’s status as the world’s largest emitter of sulphur dioxide in 2019, according to Greenpeace.
The Bigger Picture: Coal’s Role in India’s Energy Future
As the government debates its next steps, coal remains an essential yet controversial pillar of India’s energy strategy. Plans to increase coal-fired power capacity by 37% by 2032 to meet surging demand conflict with global calls to transition to cleaner energy sources. Insisting on FGDs could hinder these expansion plans, but abandoning them risks worsening industrial emissions, which account for 80% of sulphur and nitrogen oxides in the country.
“The installation of FGD systems and carbon capture technologies should not be used as a smokescreen to justify the continued power generation from these unsustainable, CO2-intensive sources,” IIT Delhi’s report warned.
India’s reconsideration of its sulphur-cutting mandate underscores a broader struggle: how to balance economic growth, energy security, and environmental sustainability. As the world’s most polluted cities like New Delhi and Kanpur demand action, the government must decide whether to double down on FGDs or pivot to cheaper, locally developed solutions.
Lead image courtesy of REUTERS/Adnan Abidi/File Photo (Chimneys of a coal-fired power plant are pictured in New Delhi, India, July 20, 2017. Picture taken July 20, 2017)
You may also be interested in :
Coal Mining’s Toll On India’s Land: A 35% Loss of Native Cover in Central Coal Belt
