NEW DELHI: With many pollutants thermal power plants By failing to meet the third deadline to implement the sulfur dioxide (SO2) emission standards notified in 2015, the Ministry of Environment has granted them a fourth extension, extending the deadline by three more years to install pollution control equipment.
To relieve defaulters, the ministry has extended the deadline for thermal power plants (TPP) located within a 10 km radius of the national capital region (NCR) or cities with more than one million population from December 31 from 2024 to December 31, 2027.
All of these power plants were expected to be installed Flue gas desulfurization (FGD) to meet SO2 standards by the previous deadline, but many of them did not do so. FGD is a process of removing sulfur compounds from the exhaust emissions of fossil fuel-fired power plants.
According to a new notification issued last week, the deadline for TPPs located within a 10 km radius of ‘critical contaminated areas’ (non-compliant cities) has been extended from December 31, 2025 to December 31, 2028 and for those located in other areas from December 31, 2026 to December 31, 2029. On the other hand, TPPs that may choose to withdraw before December 31, 2030 will be exempt from compliance. Previously, his retirement deadline was December 31, 2027.
Coal-fired thermal power plants must comply with SO2 emission standards within the stipulated deadlines, otherwise environmental compensation will be imposed on thermal power plants for non-compliance.
Since SO2 is a major air pollutant with direct and indirect effects on human health, the ministry had in 2015 notified norms to make it mandatory for TPPs to achieve the target emission standards and install FGDs by December 2017.
Since then, the deadline has been extended four times for one reason or another, including once due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
SO2 is a precursor to the formation of dangerous fine particulate matter (PM2.5), which has been linked to many health problems, including respiratory and cardiovascular diseases.
Reports suggest that India was the largest emitter of SO2 globally in 2022, accounting for more than 20% of the world’s anthropogenic emissions.
According to an analysis by a policy think tank, the Center for Research on Energy and Clean Air (CREA), only less than 8% of the total coal power plants Electricity generation capacity has installed FGD to control SO2 emissions and progress on installing the equipment has been slower than anticipated, with delays evident at multiple stages, since 2019.
In August last year, the Power Ministry informed the Lok Sabha that FGD was being installed in 537 units of coal-fired thermal power plants across the country. As of July 2024, only 39 units had installed the FGD, while the remaining units were at different stages, including the contracting and bidding process, of installing critical equipment.
Referring to the delay in installation of equipment required to meet SO2 emission norms, the ministry said that since FGD technology was new to the country, there were limited suppliers with limited capacity to supply and install FGD components.
“The capacity of suppliers for installation of FGD is approximately 16-20 GW (33-39 units) in the country and the time taken for installation is approximately 44-48 months. A sudden surge in demand has emerged as all thermal generation units have to meet SO2 emission norms within a short period, creating a huge gap between demand and supply of FGD equipment,” he said.
Although India’s FGD component manufacturing capacity has increased, it is still dependent on imports from other countries. “In addition, huge foreign exchange is also needed to import technology, equipment and skilled labor from other countries,” the ministry said.
He further informed the Lok Sabha that installation of FGD systems had also faced difficulties in terms of conceptualization, design challenges, etc. “Standardization could not be done as different sites have different requirements like space limitations, layout and orientation, etc. “said the ministry in its response to a question from Parliament.
