Indian coal miner creates renewable energy initiative

One of India’s top coal miners, NLC India Limited, has created a new green energy company, NLC India Green Energy Limited, or NIGEL, to develop new renewable energy generation and storage to curb greenhouse gas emissions that cause climate change.

NIGEL will focus on launching new and faster renewable power generation capacity, batteries, pumped hydro energy storage systems, and other technologies, said an October 22 press release announcing the new company’s first board meeting.

The Indian government is seeking to increase battery storage in the enormous country’s energy grid to 41.65 GW by 2020. “This provides great opportunity for storage system development,” said NIGEL Board Chairman Prasanna Kumar Motupalli. “The climate in the industry regarding green energy initiatives is very positive.”

NIGEL aims to create 6 gigawatts of renewable energy capacity by 2030. Currently, the company has lined up projects that will contribute 2 gigawatts to that goal.

At their meeting, Motupalli and other board members appointed key managers and approved the company’s logo – a circle that resembles its parent company symbol but features solar panels and windmills.

NIGEL will be a subsidiary of Chennai, Tamil Nadu-based NLC India Limited, a state-owned company under the Indian Ministry of Coal.

NLC India Limited’s effort with NIGEL is among many that are now sprouting throughout India. In June, the country was allocating $455.2 million in incentives for battery storage companies, Reuters reported. India has set the goal of building 500 gigawatts of renewable energy capacity by 2030. ce/jd