Green Methanol Project

What is Green Methanol project?

• The green methanol project involves capturing carbon from NTPC power plants and converting it into a green fuel.
• The objective of the partnership was to demonstrate technologies for firing a higher percentage of Torrefied Biomass in NTPC’s coal fired units, Methanol Firing and Ammonia Firing.

What is Green Methanol?

• Green methanol is methanol that is produced renewably and without polluting emissions, one of its variants being generated from green hydrogen.
• It is a low-carbon fuel that can be made from either biomass gasification or renewable electricity and captured carbon dioxide (CO2).
• This chemical compound can be used as a low-carbon liquid fuel and is a promising alternative to fossil fuels in areas where decarbonisation is a major challenge, such as maritime transport.

Other Classifications of Methanol:

• Grey methanol: It is obtained by synthesis reaction from methane present in natural gas (or in some cases, as in China, still from coal). It is therefore not a renewable or clean energy.
•  Blue methanol: It is also obtained by synthesis derived from natural gas, but includes as part of the process the capture and storage of the carbon generated during its production, converting it into a less polluting product.

Q1) Is green methanol sustainable?

Green methanol is produced using only renewable energy sources ensuring that no harmful gases are emitted into the atmosphere. Green methanol is thus synonymous with clean, renewable methanol.

Source: NTPC partners with Tecnimont for commercial production of green methanol