India is striving to conserve coal and slash its carbon emissions. The country which depended on coal for 56% of its total capacity of 356 GW as of May 2019, wants to reduce coal’s share to 45% of a planned capacity expansion to 480 GW by the end of 2022. During that period, it will also work to increase its share of renewables from the current 22% to 37%.

Leading the expansion is one of India’s largest power companies, NTPC. Formerly known as National Thermal Power Corp., the 70% state-owned company in 2010 became a “maharatna” company—a special designation that means it has greater autonomy from the central government in decision-making. Furthermore, the designation allows NTPC to incur unlimited capital expenditures, enter into joint ventures or strategic alliances, and restructure or raise debt from capital markets. It also has allowed the company, which currently has a fleet of 53 GW, to diversify, and by 2032, NTPC aims to make non-fossil-fuel-based generation capacity 30% of its portfolio.…

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