Indian multinational conglomerate Reliance Industries has outlined plans to invest approximately Rs430bn ($4.57bn) in a facility to transform underground coal into gas in Andhra Pradesh, India, according to a government memorandum reviewed by Reuters.
A draft agreement between Reliance Industries and the Andhra Pradesh Economic Development Board details a two-phase development in the southern Indian state.
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The proposed project could attract further investment of up to Rs2.7tn if it progresses, with expectations of generating about 5,000 direct and 35,000 indirect jobs.
Initial plans call for an investment of about Rs30bn, directed towards exploration, geological assessment, and pilot studies to evaluate the project’s technical and commercial feasibility.
The project’s second stage, which would commence following successful trials and regulatory clearance, would require a further Rs400bn.
If completed, this initiative would represent one of India’s largest coal-to-gas projects to date.
India’s NTPC and Adani Enterprises have also submitted applications for surface gasification ventures under the government’s National Coal Gasification Mission initiative earlier in the year.
The Indian government has been promoting coal gasification as part of efforts to decrease dependency on imported fuels, with a goal to raise annual coal gasification capacity to 100 million tonnes (mt) by 2030.
Currently, about 22.6mt of capacity is either in operation or being developed.
In May 2026, India announced the Scheme for Promotion of Surface Coal/Lignite Gasification Projects, a Rs375bn incentive scheme to subsidise up to 20% of plant and equipment costs to support these objectives.
The proposed plant adds to a string of recent investments in Andhra Pradesh, including Google’s $15bn pledge for an artificial intelligence (AI) centre and a planned $11bn investment in data centres by Reliance and its partners.
Reliance already operates a similar facility converting petroleum coke to gas at its Jamnagar refinery in western India.
In April this year, Reliance secured the Chintalapudi Sector A1 and Recherla coal blocks in Eluru district as part of India’s first commercial coal mine auctions permitting underground coal gasification.
Last month, Essar Oil & Gas secured five exploration blocks spanning roughly 1,281km² in West Bengal, Madhya Pradesh, and Telangana in India. The company obtained the acreage through the Indian government’s Special Coal Bed Methane (SCBM) Bid Rounds for 2025 and 2026.
