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China’s coal miners face a challenge to capture leaked methane

(Climate Home News, 25 Apr 2022) When Sihe Power Plant, located on the south-eastern edge of Qinshui coalfield, one of the six largest coal mines in China’s Shanxi Province, started generating power in 2008, it became a model for reducing towering emissions from the country’s coal mining sector.

The project uses methane released during the coal mining operation to generate 120MW of electricity. Since 60% of this coal gas has a concentration of 3-8% methane, it makes these sort of initiatives profitable.

“The challenge is to deal with the remaining 40% of low methane concentration coal gas,” said Yang Fuqiang, a senior researcher at Climate Change and Energy Transition Programme at Peking University in Beijing.

China’s energy sector, driven by its coal operations, accounted for a fifth of total methane emissions from the global energy sector last year – making it, by far, the largest methane emitter.

The government has introduced strong policies to prevent the direct release of methane into the atmosphere. But it is struggling to motivate coal mining giants to initiate methane mitigation projects.

In 2008, China made it mandatory for coal mining companies to capture and utilise coal mine methane above 30% concentration.

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Climate Home News, 25 Apr 2022: China’s coal miners face a challenge to capture leaked methane