As India pursues ambitious net-zero targets while grappling with rising energy demand, policymakers and industry leaders have called for a strategic shift in how the country utilises its vast coal reserves.

 

This, by placing coal gasification, coal-to-chemicals technologies and low-carbon hydrogen pathways at the centre of the debate.

 

Speaking at a high-level panel discussion titled Reimagining India's Energy Transition: The Role of Coal-to-Chemicals and Hydrogen Pathways, VK Saraswat, Former Member, NITI Aayog, said, "A paradigm shift has to take place in the way we use coal, and that will be through clean coal technologies."

 

The event, jointly organised by Chintan Research Foundation (CRF) and the Ashoka Centre for a People-centric Energy Transition (ACPET) in New Delhi, examined how India's nearly 400 billion tonnes of coal reserves can be leveraged to strengthen energy security, support industrial growth and advance decarbonisation goals.

 

With coal continuing to account for more than 70 per cent of India's electricity generation, discussions focused on the role of coal gasification and downstream applications in reducing import dependence and creating value-added industrial products.

 

Delivering the inaugural address, Saraswat underscored the importance of energy security in India's transition strategy. Highlighting India's FY2025 import bill of Rs. 2.77 lakh crore for products including LNG, methanol, ammonia and coking coal, he argued that coal gasification and coal-to-chemicals pathways could help reduce external dependence while supporting economic growth.

 

In her keynote address, Rupinder Brar, Additional Secretary, Ministry of Coal, stressed that innovation must remain at the heart of India's energy transition. She noted that global narratives around coal often originated in countries that had already depleted significant portions of their own coal resources and said India must chart its energy future based on its own developmental needs and resource realities.

 

Opening the event, Vaibhav Chowdhary, Director, ACPET, said that while renewable energy will play a decisive role in India's energy future, coal is expected to remain a critical component of the country's energy mix for decades. He emphasised the need to explore pathways that align coal utilisation with energy security, economic growth and climate commitments.

 

Debajit Palit, Centre Head, Centre for Climate Change and Energy Transition, CRF, described coal as "buried sunshine", arguing that India's energy future will depend on both renewable resources and the efficient use of domestic fossil fuels. He said coal gasification offers a pathway to advance economic security while addressing environmental concerns.

 

The first panel discussion, Coal to Syngas: The Coal Gasification Route, brought together experts from government, industry and academia to examine the technological and policy ecosystem required to scale coal gasification in India. 

 

Panellists discussed the need for indigenous technology development, policy support mechanisms and the integration of technologies such as Carbon Capture, Utilisation and Storage (CCUS), underground coal mining and coal-bed methane to improve resource efficiency and lower emissions.

 

The second session, From Syngas to Value: Chemicals and Hydrogen Pathways, focused on the commercial and technical viability of converting coal-derived syngas into hydrogen, chemicals and other value-added products. 

 

Experts highlighted the importance of supportive policy frameworks, financing models and infrastructure investments, while emphasising the role of CCUS in enabling lower-carbon industrial pathways. Discussions also addressed carbon markets, water-use challenges and broader environmental considerations associated with large-scale deployment.

 

The event also marked the release of two publications: a joint CRF-ACPET compilation on critical perspectives surrounding coal gasification and CRF's issue brief, Black Coal, Clean Molecule, which examines the strategic potential of coal-to-hydrogen pathways in India.

 

Throughout the discussions, participants acknowledged the complex challenge of balancing energy security, industrial development and decarbonisation. 

 

The deliberations reinforced the view that technological innovation, policy support and strategic utilisation of domestic resources will be central to shaping India's energy transition in the decades ahead.