Top coal producer Coal India has been enrolled as the newest member of the World Coal Association (WCA), underscoring its commitment to responsible operations.

[The country of] India, which is planning to invest US$55 billion in abated coal over the coming decade, places [that commitment] at the forefront of the coal industry at large and also demonstrates the country’s willingness to adapt and innovate,” the WCA said.

WCA CEO Michelle Manook noted that Coal India Chairman Shri Agrawal “shares the vision to educate more and more coal participants across the whole coal value chain and their stakeholders on the abated coal stewardship opportunities”; further, members are joining the organisation cognisant that coal remains essential to energy security and economic development but also has a vital role in meeting international climate change goals.

“These new members are pragmatic and progressive about coal’s contribution to the economy, the environment and ultimately, people, and they are committed to integrating and modernising coal along the whole coal value chain,” Manook added.

WCA Chairman July Ndlovu spoke form Kolkata and said that India demonstrates exemplary global leadership in balancing development with decarbonisation.

“Coal India is a global coal leader which understands the coal ecosystem and the need to collaborate. As the world’s largest coal producer, it is acutely aware of the pressures coal faces, and the need to lead discussion about “Future Coal” and coal’s ability to provide energy security, economic stability, and sustainable solutions which the world so desperately needs.”

At the first board meeting in India, Manook stressed that stakeholders have tired of the negative narrative “that does not get us any closer to demonstrating how, through the phasing-in of abated coal technologies, coal can deliver a future consistent with the Paris Agreement and the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals” while furthering the industry.

“Up to 99% of coal emissions can be eliminated through abatement technologies and processes which currently exist,” she said. “Now, more than ever, we need to bring the whole coal value chain together and demonstrate how coal is modernising to safeguard our energy, development and climate future.” 

Source: worldcoal.org