CM briefed about technology for utilising coal power plants' emission

Experts of foreign company claim many by-products can be made from coal residue


Our Correspondent October 18, 2017
The government had earlier allocated Rs10 billon for this project to generate 100MW under the gasification pilot project, but due to financial constraints, there has been no tangible progress in the past five years. PHOTO: EXPRESS

KARACHI: A delegation of an American company, Low Emissions Resources Corporation (LERC), called on Chief Minister Murad Ali Shah on Tuesday to brief him about a new technology,'Coal to Chemical', jointly developed by the company and its collaborators to produce different chemicals from the scrap of coal.

The delegation included LERC Chairperson Fernando Alvarez, Chief Finance Officer Daren Person and Director Russ Gerson. Gorntazy Group chief Munir Akram, RETech Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Tanveer Zaidi, Principal Secretary to the CM Sohail Rajput, Energy Secretary Agha Wasif and Sindh Engro Coal Mining Company CEO Shamsuddin Shaikh also attended the meeting.

Briefing the CM, the companies' experts said that through the new technology, emission of coal-fired power plants will be stored and different chemicals will be produced out of it.

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According to the experts, the technology used in coal power plants in Thar was the latest one and it did not pose any dangers to the environment. However, emission of power plants went to waste in the atmosphere, and if it was collected, it could be used to produce ammonia, methanol and water, adding to the commercial viability of the power plants.

The CM asked the delegation to establish proof of their concept through an experiment or lab test. "If the experiment turns out to be successful, the provincial government will start the pilot project with the company," he said.

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Shah also directed the energy secretary to coordinate with the delegation on their visit to the coal mines in Thar.

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