Mundra Thermal Power Project (Adani)
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Mundra Thermal Power Project (Adani) is an operating power station of at least 4620-megawatts (MW) in Tunda, Mundra, Kutch, Gujarat, India with multiple units, some of which are not currently operating.
Location
Table 1: Project-level location details
| Plant name | Location | Coordinates (WGS 84) |
|---|---|---|
| Mundra Thermal Power Project (Adani) | Tunda, Mundra, Kutch, Gujarat, India | 22.8234904, 69.5534831 (exact) |
Unit-level coordinates (WGS 84):
- Phase III Unit 5: 22.8234904, 69.5534831
- Phase III Unit 6, Phase IV Unit 7: 22.8235448, 69.5551568
- Phase I Unit 1, Phase I Unit 2, Phase II Unit 3, Phase II Unit 4: 22.8235596, 69.5511094
- Phase IV Unit 8, Phase IV Unit 9, Phase V Unit 10, Phase V Unit 11, Phase V Unit 12: 22.8235448, 69.5574957
Project Details
Table 2: Unit-level details
| Unit name | Status | Fuel(s) | Capacity (MW) | Technology | Start year |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Phase I Unit 1 | Operating | coal: bituminous | 330 | subcritical | 2009 |
| Phase I Unit 2 | Operating | coal: bituminous | 330 | subcritical | 2010 |
| Phase II Unit 3 | Operating | coal: bituminous | 330 | subcritical | 2010 |
| Phase II Unit 4 | Operating | coal: bituminous | 330 | subcritical | 2010 |
| Phase III Unit 5 | Operating | coal: bituminous | 660 | supercritical | 2010 |
| Phase III Unit 6 | Operating | coal: bituminous | 660 | supercritical | 2011 |
| Phase IV Unit 7 | Operating | coal: bituminous | 660 | supercritical | 2011 |
| Phase IV Unit 8 | Operating | coal: bituminous | 660 | supercritical | 2012 |
| Phase IV Unit 9 | Operating | coal: bituminous | 660 | supercritical | 2012 |
| Phase V Unit 10 | Cancelled | coal: bituminous | 1000 | supercritical | – |
| Phase V Unit 11 | Cancelled | coal: bituminous | 1000 | supercritical | – |
| Phase V Unit 12 | Cancelled | coal: bituminous | 1000 | supercritical | – |
Table 3: Unit-level ownership and operator details
| Unit name | Owner | Parent |
|---|---|---|
| Phase I Unit 1 | Adani Power Ltd [100%] | Adani Power Ltd [100.0%] |
| Phase I Unit 2 | Adani Power Ltd [100%] | Adani Power Ltd [100.0%] |
| Phase II Unit 3 | Adani Power Ltd [100%] | Adani Power Ltd [100.0%] |
| Phase II Unit 4 | Adani Power Ltd [100%] | Adani Power Ltd [100.0%] |
| Phase III Unit 5 | Adani Power Ltd [100%] | Adani Power Ltd [100.0%] |
| Phase III Unit 6 | Adani Power Ltd [100%] | Adani Power Ltd [100.0%] |
| Phase IV Unit 7 | Adani Power Ltd [100%] | Adani Power Ltd [100.0%] |
| Phase IV Unit 8 | Adani Power Ltd [100%] | Adani Power Ltd [100.0%] |
| Phase IV Unit 9 | Adani Power Ltd [100%] | Adani Power Ltd [100.0%] |
| Phase V Unit 10 | Adani Power Ltd [100%] | Adani Power Ltd [100.0%] |
| Phase V Unit 11 | Adani Power Ltd [100%] | Adani Power Ltd [100.0%] |
| Phase V Unit 12 | Adani Power Ltd [100%] | Adani Power Ltd [100.0%] |
Project-level coal details
- Coal source(s): Mahanadi coal fields
Background
The total capacity of the plant is 4620 MW, consisting of 4 subcritical units of 330 MW each and 5 supercritical units of 660 MW each.[1] As planned, all units of the plant were fully operational within the 11th Five Year Plan (2007-2012).[2][3]
Proposed expansion
Adani Power had proposed expanding the plant by 3 x 1,000 MW. In May 2016, the expert advisory committee (EAC) of the union ministry of environment and forests (MoEF) declined the company's proposal on the grounds that it was situated very close to ecologically sensitive creek and estuary network, as well as a reserved forest, mangrove forest, three small rivers and at least nine villages with schools and hospitals in 'close proximity' to the proposed site. The EAC suggested Adani to find another location for expansion.[4]
Ammonia co-firing
In November 2023, reporting announced that Adani planned to begin co-firing ammonia with coal at one of the power station's 330 MW units.[5] Adani reportedly partnered with the companies IHI and Kowa-Japan for the pilot project in which 20% ammonia would be co-fired at the Mundra power station, and further planned to expand the project to other Adani Power coal-fired power stations.[5]
In August 2024, a feasibility study was reportedly underway to assess the potential for co-firing ammonia at Mundra power station.[6]
Financial problems
Adani Power Mundra likely to seek bankruptcy protection
Adani says the company has been unable to service its power purchase agreement (PPA) for the plant amid rising costs for coal. In response, Adani Power tried to sell a 51 per cent stake in the plant to Gujarat Urja Vikas Nigam (GUVNL), a state-owned power utility that has power purchase agreements for 2000 MW from the plant. However, lenders for the Mundra plant withdrew from the sale. Without a sale to GUVNL, Adani Power Mundra said it is likely to seek bankruptcy protection. The plant ran at only 37 per cent plant load factor in the first quarter of 2018 and is unable to service its debts. Adani Mining claimed its proposed Carmichael coal mine in Australia was needed to supply the plant.[7]
In 2010, before construction of the project was complete, Adani argued that Gujarat should renegotiate the agreement and allow Adani to sell power at a higher price since the price of Indonesian coal, which it used as a raw material, had gone up. Yet in 2013 it was revealed that Adani Enterprises held 74% of shares in the Indonesian coal company through which the coal was being imported, meaning the company was profiting from the high coal prices.[8]
Bankruptcy avoided by passing costs to power users
In April 2017, the Supreme Court struck down Adani's request for a new power price argument. However, in December 2018 the Gujarat government passed an order allowing Adani to sell power at higher prices to Gujarat Urja Vikas Nigam, the state electricity distribution company, which in turn was allowed to raise the tariffs for consumers. Accordig to Scroll.in, the Gujarat government order effectively extricated the Mundra power project from potential insolvency proceedings.[8]
Emergency generation order
In February 2023, India’s Ministry of Power ordered all coal plants utilizing imported coal to operate at full capacity between March 16 and June 15, 2023. The Ministry stated that the order was required, as power demand was expected to peak during the period and maximum capacity was necessary. The emergency law affected 15 coal-fired power stations equivalent to 17,600 MW, including the Tata Mundra Ultra Mega Power Project and the Mundra Thermal Power Project (Adani). Coal consumption was expected to increase by 8% in the financial year ending in March 2024.[9]
Project receives CDM certification
Unit 5 of Phase III of the Mundra project was the first plant in India to use supercritical technology, which provides greater efficiency through higher boiler pressures and temperatures. Phase III of the Mundra project received Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) certification under the the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCC), making it the first supercritical project in the world to receive CDM certification.[10] The award of CDM certification makes the project eligible for subsidies financed by carbon offsets bought by British and European companies in lieu of cutting their own emissions.[11] Awarding CDM credits to coal plants has been widely criticized. According to a report by the Stockholm Environmental Institute, using CDM credits to encourage a more efficient power technology is only appropriate if the more efficient technology is not happening anyway. However, "the transition away from less efficient subcritical technology to supercritical technology in India ... is well under way, if not largely complete."[12]
Coal supply
As of 2011, 70% of the requirements at Mundra is met with imported coal.[13]
Adani has proposed the Carmichael Coal Project in Australia to export coal to plants in India. The project would include an open cut and underground coal mine and a 189 km rail link to transport the coal from the Galilee Basin to Abbot Point, near the Great Barrier Reef.[14]
Fly ash dumping
In September 2022, Adani was criticized for their management of fly ash, a byproduct of coal-powered thermal power stations. According to a report by the Comptroller and Auditor General of India (CAG), the plant dumped 1.5 million tonnes of fly ash in low-lying areas between 2014 and 2019. The power station's operator did not have permission to dump from the Gujarat Pollution Control Board, and they failed to install an online fly ash monitoring system in 2016 when instructed to do so. CAG stated that, "Mundra is the worst NOx hotspot contributing hugely to air pollution".[15]
As of November 2022, the Gujarat State Pollution Control Board had not responded to requests regarding what action, if any, would be taken against the power station.[16]
Articles and Resources
References
- ↑ "Adani power synchronizes country's 1st super critical unit". economictimes.com. 2010-12-23.
- ↑ "Power Generation" Adani Power, accessed July 2011
- ↑ "Monthly Report on Broad Status of Thermal Power Projects in the Country" Government of India Ministry of Power, February 2012.
- ↑ Premal Balan, "Adani Power's expansion at Mundra hits green hurdle," TNN, May 26, 2016
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 Adani Power to blend green ammonia with coal to run 330-MW boiler at Mundra plant to cut carbon emission, The Economic Times, November 29, 2023
- ↑ Adani Total Gas Planning Reduction of Emissions at its Mundra Facility, Chemical Industry Digest, August 29, 2024
- ↑ "Adani Power Mundra likely to approach NCLT for bankruptcy protection," BS, June 1, 2018
- ↑ 8.0 8.1 "Adani power project was on the brink of bankruptcy – but the BJP government in Gujarat saved it," Scroll.in, March 5, 2019
- ↑ "India invokes emergency law to force coal-based power plants to up output," Reuters, February 20, 2023
- ↑ "Power Generation," Adani website, accessed May 7, 2012
- ↑ John Vidal, "Rich countries to pay energy giants to build new coal-fired power plants" The Guardian, July 14, 2010.
- ↑ Michael Lazarus and Chelsea Chandler, "Coal Power in the CDM: Issues and Options," Stockholm Environment Institute, 2011
- ↑ Neeraj Thakur, "Indonesian nightmare for Tata, Adani, JSW, Lanco" DNA, June 13, 2011.
- ↑ "Court challenge will test coal mining’s climate culpability," The Conversation, January 15, 2015
- ↑ "3 power plants dumping fly ash without GPCB approval: CAG report," Indian Express, September 23, 2022
- ↑ "Authorities turned a blind eye to Adani Group’s pollution and falsehoods," Adani Watch, November 22, 2022
Additional data
To access additional data, including an interactive map of coal-fired power stations, a downloadable dataset, and summary data, please visit the Global Coal Plant Tracker on the Global Energy Monitor website.
