Relaxed emission norms for thermal era to scale back energy prices

NEW DELHI: The obligatory retrofitting of coal-fired era vegetation with mechanisms to scale back sulphur emission will apply to solely items inside 10 km of cities with inhabitants exceeding 10 lakh as a substitute of all energy stations beneath a 2015 mandate.The revised coverage, notified on Saturday, is predicted to scale back the price of energy by 25-30 paise per unit, officers and specialists concerned within the revision of the sooner mandate for set up of FGD (flue fuel desulphurisation) items in any respect energy vegetation mentioned.The brand new norm lets off the hook 79% of the nation’s thermal era capability, a proven fact that environmental activists have used to criticise the revision. However officers argued that the “evidence-based recalibration” makes the coverage “targeted, environment friendly and climate-conscious.”For instance, they mentioned, beneath the revised coverage, new vegetation in critically polluted areas or non-attainment cities can be evaluated on a case-by-case foundation as a substitute of an omnibus utility that will push up the price of energy.The notification justified the revision, saying it’s in step with the evaluation by the Central Air pollution Management Board, which discovered elevated carbon dioxide emissions ensuing from the operation of current management measures. Moreover, research by IIT-Delhi, CSIR-NEERI and the Nationwide Institute of Superior Research put ambient sulphur dioxide ranges in most elements of the nation throughout the Nationwide Ambient Air High quality Requirements.Energy producers have been opposing the blanket FGD mandate for all vegetation because of the excessive value concerned. Trade estimates put the price of putting in FGDs in any respect energy vegetation at Rs 2.5 lakh crore, or Rs 1.2 crore per megawatt. This, business representatives had mentioned, would jack up tariff for shoppers. Moreover, the common timeline of 45 days for every unit was additionally cited as a risk to grid stability throughout peak seasons.Differentiated compliance based mostly on proximity to city populations and the sulphur content material of the coal used will ease the burden on energy producers, business executives mentioned. Indian coal usually has a sulphur content material of lower than 0.5% and attributable to excessive stack heights and beneficial meteorological circumstances, dispersion of SO2 is environment friendly.Measurements throughout a number of cities confirmed sulphur oxide ranges ranging between 3 and 20 micrograms per cubic meter, considerably under the NAAQS threshold of 80 micrograms per cubic meter. The officers mentioned research had additionally questioned the environmental and financial efficacy of a common FGD mandate within the Indian context.