(PTI)
The Cabinet may soon take a call on whether a fresh lease is required by state-owned Coal India for extracting coal bed methane (CBM) which remains untapped in want of clarity, a top official today said.
To expedite gas production from coal seams, however, the government had earlier permitted Coal India to mine CBM through a notification.
“Both the ministries (Coal Ministry and Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas) sat along with the others….It has been sorted out that there is no need for a separate lease and that CCEA note is still pending. So, once the CCEA decides that then we will go ahead,” Coal Secretary Susheel Kumar told in a interview. Coal Bed Methane is a form of natural gas trapped in coal seams underground. Such gas can be extracted by drilling into the seam.
“The CCEA (Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs) note is about just to say that there is no need for a separate lease. You know they (Petroleum ministry) had issued some notification and we said that notification needs to be amended the way we are saying. That amendment will have to be done for which it is pending in CCEA,” the secretary explained.
