The pollution regulator is retracing its steps related to polluting power plants. The CPCB’s latest directions dated May 8, 2020 that levies a penalty at the rate of Rs 18 lakh/month/polluting plant will not control harmful emissions but promote laxity. In the beginning of the year, thermal stations in six states were issued notices and asked why their units should not be closed down besides being slapped with an environmental compensation for the damage that their operations were wreaking. Notices were issued to plants located in five states – Haryana, Punjab, Uttar Pradesh, Telangana, Andhra Pradesh, and Tamil Nadu. In her budget speech of 2020, the finance minister, Nirmala Sitharaman had indicated the government’s thinking and stated that the power plants which are ageing or failing to meet standards and whose carbon emission levels are high, should be advised to shut down.
Now everything has swung to aid the polluters who can continue to operate with emissions provided they pay a penalty. Both facts and policy resolve have crumbled.
Coal-based power plants have been one of the biggest contributors to air pollution, with power generation accounting for over 80 per cent of the industrial SO2 emissions in India. The plants on notice had failed to meet the regulation standards with regard to the emission of Particulate Matter (PM), Sulphur Dioxide (SO2) and Oxides of Nitrogen (NOx).
The measures to regulate SO2 and NOx were first introduced by the union ministry of environment forest and climate change (MoEFCC) in 2015. The plants were divided into three categories of compliance according to their commissioning date and were required to carry out certain specified technical installations. Elaborate stakeholder coordination – MoEFCC, CEA, CERC and gencos was done. Implementation will happen in phases and retrofitting as per environmental norms is to be completed by 2022.
India has total installed capacity of about 369 GW, out of which about 200 GW is coal and lignite-based. In 2017, CEA came out with a list of 263 power plants totalling 48 GW for retirement by 2027 based on age and environmental norms.
Out of the 48 GW, about 5 GW has been retired and about 43 GW continues to be operational.
Majority of these plants are more than 30 years old and have outlived their design and economic life. They consume more coal, are highly inefficient as they are based on sub-critical technologies and have very high levels of emissions per unit MW produced. Huge amounts spent on their Renovation & Modernization (R&M) / Life Extension (LE) is money down a black hole. A relevant case study is presented in the cover story. The CEA should review its R&M / LE plans as it involves high cost without any gain to gencos and consumers. India has sufficient coal based power capacity to replace the planned retirements. A total of 35 GW of state and central sector capacity are under constructions, 15 GW of IPPs are commissioned but are without a PPA. Additionally, an average PLF of coal based power plants in FY 2019-20 at 56.08 per cent, shows there is sufficient headroom.
