The Supreme Court has directed the Delhi High Court to decide coal scam appeals promptly, with no interim stays granted on these trials. The court order modifies a previous Supreme Court mandate from twelve years ago, now allowing appeals to be decided within four weeks while protecting accused rights. This development comes as Reliance Industries' proposed ₹2.73 lakh crore coal gasification complex in Andhra Pradesh's Eluru district moves forward, subject to commercial viability after exploration. The project represents a major milestone in India's clean energy transition while also mitigating dependence on imported energy feedstock.
Reliance Industries Limited (RIL) has proposed to invest approximately ₹2.73 lakh crore over a 30-year period to develop India's first integrated Underground Coal Gasification complex in Andhra Pradesh's Eluru district. According to the company's proposal submitted to the state government, the investment will be executed in three phases with exploration activities beginning in the current fiscal year. The exploration and pilot phase (Q3 2026 to Q4 2027) will require an investment of up to ₹3,000 crore. If exploration proves successful, RIL will invest ₹1,20,000 crore in the development phase from 2028-30 and ₹1,50,000 crore in the production phase from 2030 onwards.
This project represents a major milestone in India's clean energy transition while also mitigating dependence on imported energy feedstock. The initiative would support domestic manufacturing of chemicals, methanol, and synthetic fuels. As per company estimates, the project is expected to create 3,000-5,000 direct jobs at steady-state operations and 20,000-35,000 indirect and induced livelihoods across the regional supply chain. The project aligns with the National Coal Gasification Mission's objective of 100 MT of coal gasification by 2030 and will help reduce India's dependence on crude imports, which expose the economy to price volatility and geopolitical risks.
The project will utilize deep coal reserves in the Chintalapudi and Recherla blocks, which RIL recently secured through an e-auction conducted by the coal ministry. The Chintalapudi coal block, spread across 3,000 acres, is estimated to contain 904.94 million tonnes of G-12 grade coal, while the Recherla block, covering 5,500 acres, holds an estimated 2,225.67 million tonnes of G-13 grade coal. Together, the two mines are estimated to contain 3,130.61 million tonnes of coal reserves, with the coal deposits lying at depths of more than 600 metres. Underground Coal Gasification (UCG) is an in-situ process that converts deep-seated coal into usable synthesis gas (syngas) without physically extracting the coal, leveraging technology to extract energy from coal seams that are otherwise economically and logistically unviable for conventional mining.
According to Business Standard, Reliance Industries reported strong financial results for Q1 FY27. The company's consolidated net profit increased 6.12% year-on-year and 12.66% quarter-on-quarter to ₹23,196 crore, which includes the share of profit from associates and joint ventures. Gross revenue rose 24.50% year-on-year and 4.60% quarter-on-quarter to ₹3,40,257 crore in the June 2026 quarter. These figures demonstrate the company's robust financial performance across its diversified business portfolio.
