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SPOTLIGHT ON Asia’s DIRTY COMPANIES ADANI ENTERPRISES and

Founded in 1988 as a commodity trading business, the Wrapped in Dirt: Adani’s Mining and Thermal soon grew into one of India’s leading Power Business multinational conglomerates. Its wide-ranging business interests include infrastructure and logistics, agribusiness, Besides importing coal to burn in its power plants, Adani real estate, financial services, defense and aerospace, has been developing mines within and outside of India. power generation and transmission, and and Starting in 2003 with the Parsa East and Kanta Basan coal trading. Adani has a combined revenue of US$13 billion block in Chhattisgarh, Adani has built eight (8) coal mine and market capitalization1 of US$22 billion (as on 27th projects in its home country alone with a total mineable May 2020) comprising 6 publicly-traded companies. reserve of 2.843 billion metric tons. Table 1. Adani Coal Mine Projects

Block Area (in Mineable Reserves (in Coal Mine Project Year/Stage of Production sq. Km.) million MT) Parsa East & Kanta Basan Coal Block, Chhattisgarh 27.11 452 2013 Parsa Coal Block, Chhattisgarh 12.52 184 Under Development Kente Extension Coal Block, Chhattisgarh 17.59 170 (Under Exploration) Under Development Gidhmuri Paturia Coal Block, Chhattisgarh 7.52 158 Under Development Conditional LOI received. Gare Pelma-I Coal Block, Chhattisgarh 35.84 427 Agreement signing awaited Conditional LOI received. Gare Pelma-II Coal Block, Chhattisgarh 25.83 655 Agreement signing awaited Gare Pelma-III Coal Block, Chhattisgarh 6.3 134.10 (OC-95 + UG-39) 2019 Talabira II & III Coal Block, Odisha 19.14 554 Under Development Sulyari Coal Block, Madhya Pradesh 16.71 109 Under Development

Overseas, Adani has coal mining operations in Indonesia MW, Korba West with an operational capacity of 600 and Australia. With a total mineable reserve of 269 MW. Recently, Adani Power was supposed to buy out the million metric tons, the coal mine at the island of Bunyu US-based AES Corporation’s 49-percent stake in the in North Kalamintan is the company’s first outside of government-controlled 1740 MW Odisha Power India. For the project, forests and farmlands were cleared Generation Corporation at Banharpalli, Odisha. However, and coral reefs were damaged at the expense of food in a last minute decision, the Odisha state government security, water supply, and ecological balance in the decided to exercise its right of first refusal and bought island. Thousands of native Tidung people were also AES’ stake for INR 1000 crore (US$ 136.26 million), displaced and were paid measly sums for their land. blocking Adani’s plans of buying it. Table 2. Operational Coal Power Plants In Australia, the ongoing Carmichael Coal Mine and Rail Project is expected to start producing coal two years after Plant, Location Capacity construction, at up to 27 million tons of coal a year. The Mundra, Gujarat 4620 MW project is not without controversy: in June 2019, Australia Tiroda, Mahashatra 3300 MW has given the final approval for the construction of the controversial coal mine after the Queensland state Kawai, Rajasthan 1320 MW approved Adani’s groundwater management plan. This, Udupi, Karnataka 1200 MW despite scientists’ warning that the company’s modelling Adani Power aims to remain the largest coal player in underestimated future impacts to wetlands and aquatic the private sector in India by building five additional life near the mine’s proposed site. coal-fired power plants with a combined capacity of 8760 MW. Among the new sites are Dahej in Gujarat, and In one of the several legal hurdles to its approval, the Chhindwara in Madhya Pradesh. It also plans to expand Carmichael coal project is also the subject of opposition existing plants in Udupi and Kawai. from Wangan and Jagalingou indigenous groups, who were not given free and prior informed consent to the Table 3. Coal Power Plants in the Pipeline project’s construction over their ancestral lands. However, changes in native title laws made in 2017 Plant, Location Capacity allowed for the recognition of Indigenous Land Use Godda, Jharkhand 1600 MW Agreements not signed by all native title claimants, to Chhindwara, Madhya Pradesh 1320 MW Adani’s favor. Dahej, Gujarat 2640 MW Udupi Expansion, Karnataka 1600 MW Adani Power Ltd. is the largest among private power Kawai Expansion, Rajasthan 1600 MW producers in India, generating 12,180 MW from 5 plants across 5 states. Overall, it is second to the state-owned National Thermal Power Corporation (NTPC) Ltd. The most controversial of the proposed coal projects is Between 2019 to May 2020, Adani’s power business the nearly $2-billion, 1600-megawatt Godda coal-fired earned INR 30,471 crore (US$ 421.27 million). Adding power plant project in Jharkhand state. (See Fact Sheet on muscle to its power generation capacity is its recent spate Adani Godda Plant.) It intends to produce electricity by of acquisitions, the GMR’s Chhattisgarh Plant of 1370 burning coal that is mined from Adani’s Carmichael coal Photo from Market Forces project in Australia and then sell it not to consumers in The DRI has further alleged that a part of the undue Godda or elsewhere in India, but to Bangladesh. profits were earned and stashed away in offshore tax havens. In 2014, the DRI issued show cause notices In addition to coal power escalating an already existing alleging over-invoicing of power plant equipment by a climate emergency, electricity derived from imported coal number of companies within the Adani Group to the tune will bring greater economic burden to the people of of INR 6,000 crore (USD 679.8 million). The notices Bangladesh. A report by the Institute for Energy alleged the Adani Group had over-valued capital goods Economics and Financial Analysis (IEEFA) warned that imported by Adani Power Maharashtra Ltd., Adani while the country needs to increase its electricity supply, Power Rajasthan Ltd., and Maharashtra Power Eastern the Godda Power Plant puts Bangladesh and its people at Grid Power Transmission Company Ltd. The said a disadvantage. By tying the country in a 25-year companies were alleged to have indulged in a “trade- purchasing power agreement and imposing a tariff as based money laundering scheme” by mispricing high as Tk 8.71 per kilowatt hour of imported electricity equipment and by routing invoices through an which will certainly be passed on to consumers, Adani intermediary in the United Arab Emirates that is said to will only worsen poverty in a country already made be a “front company” of the Adani Group. vulnerable by the devastating impacts of climate change. State-supported dirty energy deals? The project also affects the food, shelter, and livelihood of people living around the plant’s proposed site. In fact, India’s Ministry of Power (MoP) allegedly fixed the Adani has started evicting members of the indigenous quantity of coal imports on the basis of domestic coal Santhal community from their own lands, fencing off availability and generation level for the year as assessed their homes and uprooting trees and crops that villagers by the Central Electricity Authority of India (CEA). A depend on for survival. Not backing down, the villagers “target” for importing coal was given to each power met Adani with legal opposition over the company’s generation firm. The state-owned NTPC Ltd. awarded 64 acquisition of the proposed site, saying the deal is marred contracts or 40 packages for the import of coal between by illegalities and irregularities on top of being April 2011 and March 2016. Thirty-six (36) of the 40 destructive to ecosystems around the site. A Green packages2 were awarded to a single entity, Adani Tribunal hearing with regard to the villagers’ petition is Enterprises Ltd. set on September 16. State and Private Sector’s departure from India’s Marred in controversy over illegal coal trade National Electricity Plan: Favoring coal?

In 2018, the Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI) of Based on projections in electricity demand under India's the Government of India has claimed the costs of National Electricity Plan for 2017-2022, the significant Indonesian coal imports by Adani’s power subsidiaries increase in the committed capacity of renewable energy were deliberately over-valued and were then recovered sources can help in meeting the country’s energy needs. from the public through higher tariffs and user charges. Only 6,445 MW of additional coal-based capacity is needed to meet the peak demand and energy “clean” coal combustion technologies to ensure the requirement for 2021 to 2022.3 Hence, India needs continued use of coal “in an environmentally no extra coal power even as coal plants producing friendly and sustainable manner.” 25,572 MW have retired and are about to retire from 2017 to 2022. Yet still, 47,885 MW worth of coal In line with this, Adani Power prides itself in being projects have been allowed to proceed the first power company in India to use "supercritical" technology, for which they were even and are now under various stages of construction. awarded a Clean Development Certification by the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Also, as indicated by the International Energy Change (UNFCC). Agency in its 2020 Energy Policy Review of India, the country’s climate commitments under the Paris However, any notion that there is clean coal has agreement, as well as air pollution caused by been debunked by climate scientists and activists. greenhouse gases and particulate matter emitted by While they supposedly burn coal more "efficiently"5, coal plants4 and the declining cost of renewable plants using ultra-supercritical technology still emit energy are among the factors that invite 15 times more than plants that use introspection on the country’s long-standing renewable energy and twice as much CO2 as gas- dependence on coal. fired power plants.

Yet the same policy review insists that coal- APMDD’s Call to Adani: Make a Total Coal Exit consuming sectors, including power generation, will Now! drive the growth of the Indian economy in the coming years. It states: “The main certainty is that, We at APMDD assert that “clean coal” is a dirty lie. given its central role in the energy and economy in The mining, transport, and burning of coal involve a India, a part of India’s success in the future is linked destructive process that the Adani Group is engaged to the successful and efficient management of the in. We call on Adani and even India to establish a coal sector.” In other words, India is not plan to meet the Paris goals and make a total exit entertaining the phase-out of the coal industry. from investing in dirty energy to fuel economic Instead, its Energy Policy pushes for the pursuit of development.

Endnotes Adani Power to acquire 49 per cent stake in Odisha Power for Rs 1,019 crore. 1 Market capitalization is the price of the company in the stock market https://energy.economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/power/adani- and reveals the market value of a publicly-listed company. power-to-acquire-49-per-cent-stake-in-odisha-power-for-rs-1019- 2 Worth INR 22,796.91 crore or approximately USD 3 Billionfor 36.79 crore/76541964 million tons of coal accounting for over 75 percent of the procurement by value. Coal Myths: Myth 2 – Coal is clean. https://endcoal.org/coal- myths/myth-2-coal-is-clean/ 3 These coal plants will be retiring as they are to complete more than 25 years of age by 2027. DRI Accuses Adani Group Firm of Impeding Over-Invoicing Probe in Bombay HC Affidavit: Report. 4 The 2020 India Energy Policy review shows coal use in power https://thewire.in/business/directorate-revenue-intelligence-adani- generation is among the largest emitters of greenhouse gases, as it is coal-imports-probe responsible for 60% of industrial particulate matter (PM) emissions, 45% of sulphur dioxide (SO2) emissions and 30% of nitrogen oxide India 2020 Energy Policy Review (NOX) emissions. https://niti.gov.in/sites/default/files/2020-01/IEA-India%202020- In-depth-EnergyPolicy_0.pdf 5 Efficiency is the ratio of electric power produced from the amount of fuel (in this case, coal) consumed. Optimal Energy Mix in Power Generation on Medium and Long https://www.powermag.com/plant-efficiency-begin-with-the-right- Term Basis. https://www.prsindia.org/report-summaries/optimal- definitions/ energy-mix-power-generation-medium-and-long-term-basis

References Position Paper by Concerned Scientists: Deficiencies in the scientific assessment of the Carmichael Mine impacts to the Doongmabulla Springs. http://doi.org/10.25957/5cf4adbc6f43c Adani Godda Power Project Too Expensive, Too Late, and Too Risky for Bangladesh. https://ieefa.org/wp- Report of the Committee on Optimal Energy Mix in Power content/uploads/2018/04/Adani-Godda-Power-Project- Generation on Medium- and Long-Term April_2018.pdf Basis. https://powermin.nic.in/sites/default/files/webform/notice s/Report_of_the_Committee_on_optimal_energy_mix_in_power_gen Adani Power on Yahoo Finance, September 2020. eration_on_medium_and%20long_term_basis.pdf https://finance.yahoo.com/quote/ADANIPOWER.BO/