Panel seeks changes in EC to the mine

The expert appraisal committee of the Ministry of Environment and Forests (MoEF) has deferred issuance of terms of reference for environmental appraisal to the proposal of setting up a coal washery at Kistaram village in Khammam district for cleaning the coal of Singareni Collieries Company Ltd.

At its meeting on the proposal, the panel observed after detailed deliberations that it would simultaneously require an amendment in the environmental clearance given for Jalagam Vengal Rao Opencast Project-II (mine) of SCCL in March 2010 with a normative capacity of four million tonnes per annum (MTPA) and peak capacity of five MTPA. The committee has also desired the presence and commitment of SCCL considering its stake in the washery for taking forward the proposal.

The coal washery with four million tonnes per annum has been proposed by Global Coal & Mining Private Limited on build, own and operate (BOO) basis as part of the SCCL plans to have more washeries to improve the quality of coal.

During the deliberations on the proposal, representatives of the company planning the coal washery explained to the expert committee that raw coal of 3.32 MTPA to four MTPA would be supplied by the SCCL for washing for a period of 15 years. It is stated that the washery to be established with an estimated cost of ₹100 crore would generate employment for 56 persons during the construction stage and 400 persons during the operational stage.

Ash percentage

Further, the washery would decrease ash percentage in coal and improve its quality from Grade-12 at pit head stage to Grade-9 after washing.

The entire G-12 coal produced from the JVR OC-II project is planned to be washed after the establishment of the washery.

The estimated requirement of water would be 100 litres/tonne of raw coal and it would be sourced from the SCCL mine pit water. It is stated that the power requirement would be around four units per tonne of raw coal and 2.5 units per tonne would be provided free of cost by the SCCL.