Category: News

Porvorim: Members of the state assembly were unanimous that mining operations had to resume at the earliest but differed on an appropriate solution the state government could adopt to restart iron ore mining.

MLAs across party lines pointed out that illegal mining activity and the closure of mining operations had affected the state’s environment and economy respectively.

While legislators said the closure of mining activity had put mining-dependant families under financial stress, they also said any attempt to restart mining operations which is beyond the purview of the Supreme Court’s judgment could have legal ramifications.

“Start mining but start mining within the parameters of law. Don’t throw the Supreme Court report into the dust,” former chief minister and Congress MLA Luizinho Faleiro said. Read more

Courtesy: The Times of India

Goa Chief Minister Manohar Parrikar today told the state Legislative Assembly that the government had recovered Rs 1,487.91 crore from mine owners in the form of e-auctioning of ore and royalty payments on them.

He was replying on cut motions moved by the opposition on the demand for grants of the Mining department.

“The total loss estimated by the Public Accounts Committee due to illegal mining is Rs 4,000 crore. A panel of chartered accountants has put this figure at Rs 1,508.59 crore. The CAG has pegged it at Rs 1,922 crore,” Parrikar told the House. Read more

Courtesy: Money control

Poised to drive the future of coal power, many Southeast Asian countries are considering new coal plants with high-efficiency, low-emissions (HELE) technologies, a new report suggests.

According to the International Energy Agency’s (IEA’s) December-released World Energy Outlook 2017, Southeast Asia, along with India and other developing economies in Asia, will drive global coal demand. The region’s coal consumption is expected to grow two-and-a-half times to 385 million tonnes of coal equivalent (Mtce) in 2040, even as demand remains sluggish in the rest of the world compared to other fuels. Demand growth will clearly be driven by power plants, which are expected to account for nearly 75% of additional coal use in the coming 25 years, the agency noted.

“Electricity demand grows by 3.7% per year over the period and the region’s power system planners need to mobilise all sources of power generation to keep pace. Coal is a fuel of choice not only because it is markedly cheaper than natural gas in the long term but also because coal projects are in many cases easier to pursue as they do not require capital-intensive fuel delivery infrastructure (unlike gas),” it said. Read more

Courtesy: Power