World Resources & Their Distribution | Geography Optional for UPSC (Notes) PDF Download

Resources

“Anything that can be used to satisfy a need is a resource”.
A resource is a source or supply from which benefit is produced. Typically, resources are materials, energy, services, staff, knowledge, or other assets that are transformed to produce benefit and, in the process, may be consumed or made unavailable. Benefits of resource utilization may include increased wealth, meeting needs or wants, proper functioning of a system, or enhanced well-being. From a human perspective, a natural resource is anything obtained from the environment to satisfy human needs and wants.

All resources have two things in common:

• Utility: Utility or usability is what makes a substance a resource.
• Value: Value refers to its worth. Some resources have tangible economic value like petrol, while others might not have an economic value but will still be resources, like a beautiful landscape, fresh air, etc.

An important point to remember is that, “Resources are not, they become.” – Zimmerman.
The utility of a substance or object depends upon the time and the technology available. Time and technology are two important factors that can change substances into resources. Both are related to the needs of the people. People themselves are the most important resource. It is their ideas, knowledge, inventions, and discoveries that lead to the creation of more resources. Each discovery or invention leads to many others.

For example:

• The discovery of fire led to the practice of cooking and other processes.
• The invention of the wheel ultimately resulted in the development of newer modes of transport.
• The technology to create hydroelectricity has turned energy in fast-flowing water into an important resource.

Classification of Resources

Resources are broadly classified as:

• Natural Resources
• Human-made Resources
• Human Resources

Natural Resources

Natural resources are materials provided by nature that can be directly or indirectly used by humans for their personal or economic gain. Earth’s natural resources are vital to the survival and development of the human population. A natural resource’s value rests in the amount available and the demand for it.

Examples of natural resources:

• Sunlight
• Water
• Air
• Minerals
• Plants and animals

Depending on various factors, natural resources are further classified into different categories:

Based on the need for development:

• Directly usable resources
• Resources that need development:
  • Actual Resources: Currently being used and already surveyed and quantified to a large extent. Examples: Coal, petroleum, metal ores, forests.
  • Potential Resources: Present in a region but not currently used, often due to non-availability of technology or proper amount. Examples: Thorium found in Kerala.

Based on the origin of the natural resource:

• Biotic Natural Resources: Organic origin, including forests, forest products, flora and fauna, and also coal, petroleum, etc.
• Abiotic Natural Resources: Inorganic origin, comprising nonliving things like land, water, air, metals. Their use and viability depend on accessibility and value, and their total reserve cannot be increased by human efforts.

Based on the availability and distribution of the resource:

• Renewable Resources: Can be replenished by nature in a short period of time. Examples: Air, water, crops, forests. The rate of replenishment can differ according to the resource.
• Non-renewable Resources: Formed over a very long geological period. Examples: Minerals, fossil fuels. Their rate of formation is very slow, and they cannot be replenished quickly once used. Some resources can be recycled (e.g., metals), while others cannot (e.g., coal, natural gas).

Impact of Industrial Revolution

After the Industrial Revolution and the population explosion, the demand for these resources increased exponentially. This not only resulted in the quick depletion of these resources but also caused:

• Ecological imbalance
• Destruction of habitats
• Pollution

Mineral Resources

A mineral is a naturally occurring inorganic solid with a definite chemical composition and an ordered atomic arrangement. This may seem complex, but breaking it down makes it simpler:

• Naturally Occurring: Minerals are not made by humans.
• Inorganic: Minerals have never been alive and are not made up of plants or animals.
• Solids: Minerals are not liquids (like water) or gases (like the air around you).
• Definite Chemical Composition: Each mineral is made of a particular mix of chemical elements.
• Ordered Atomic Arrangement: The chemical elements that make up each mineral are arranged in a particular way, which is why minerals ‘grow’ as crystals.

Minerals are valuable natural resources, being finite and non-renewable. They constitute the vital raw materials for many basic industries and are a major resource for development. Management of mineral resources must be closely integrated with the overall strategy of development, and exploitation of minerals should be guided by long-term national goals and perspectives.

Types of Minerals

Minerals are broadly classified into following ways:

Extraction of Minerals

• Open Cast Mining: Open-pit mining, also known as opencast mining, open-cut mining, and strip mining, involves the process of digging out rock or minerals from the earth by removing them from an open pit or borrow. This type of mining is distinguished from extractive methods that require tunneling into the earth. Open-pit mines are used when deposits of commercially valuable minerals or rock are found close to the surface, where the overburden (the layer of material covering the valuable deposit) is comparatively thin or the material of interest is structurally inappropriate for tunneling.
• Shaft Mining: Shaft mining is a form of underground mining using shafts driven vertically from the top down into the earth to access ore or minerals. Shaft mining, or shaft sinking, refers to the method of excavating a vertical or near-vertical tunnel from the top down, where there is initially no access to the bottom.
• Drilling: Petroleum and natural gas occur far below the earth’s surface. Deep wells are bored to extract them, a process known as drilling.
• Quarrying: Quarrying is the open or surface excavation of rock used for various purposes, including construction, ornamentation, road building, and as an industrial raw material.

Uses of Minerals

Mineral resources can be found in almost every aspect of our lives. Here are some examples of their uses:

• Granite: Widely used as a building stone, granite is one of the hardest rocks found in nature. It is composed of three minerals: quartz, feldspar, and mica.
• Gypsum: Used in plaster casts for broken arms or legs.
• Graphite: Used to make the lead in pencils.
• Talc: Used to make crayons and paints.
• Sulfur: Used in fireworks, matches, explosives, sulfuric acid, fertilizers, chemicals, and dyestuff.

Copper

• Source: Obtained from a metallic mineral called chalcopyrite or copper pyrite.
• Properties: Good conductor of heat and electricity, flexible, can be rolled into sheets and wires.
• Uses: Electrical appliances, electrical cables and wires, switches, coins, cooking utensils, water pipes, plumbing, heating, roofing, and construction.

Iron

• Source: Obtained from minerals such as limonite, hematite, and magnetite (iron ores).
• Uses: Manufacturing steel, ships, airplanes, cars, cycles, trucks, vans, building support and structures, computers, office stationery (staples, nails, paper clips).
• Manganese
• Use: Key component in the production of iron and steel.

Aluminum

• Source: Obtained from its ore, bauxite.
• Uses: Manufacturing automobiles, airplanes, building and electrical materials, bottling and canning industries, kitchen cookware and foil, personal products (deodorants, cosmetics).

Gold and Silver

• Uses: Jewelry, medallions, coins, dentistry, medicine.

Gemstones

• Properties: Hard and come in many beautiful colors.
• Types:
  • Precious Stones: Diamonds, sapphires, emeralds, rubies (rare and very expensive).
  • Semi-precious Stones: Turquoise, garnet, amethyst, aquamarine, topaz, moonstone, peridot, opal (not as rare).
• Uses: Cut and polished for jewelry, set into precious metals like gold, silver, and platinum.
• Diamond: The hardest mineral found on earth, used for making cutting tools for other gemstones.

Minerals in Living Beings

• Iron: Present in every living cell, essential for the production of hemoglobin, the primary component of red blood cells.
• Other Minerals: Zinc, manganese, copper, and fluoride are required in very small amounts in our diet.

Need for Conservation of Minerals

• Minerals are non-renewable resources. They cannot be replenished and new reserves cannot be created once they are depleted. These resources are an earthly treasure belonging to the entire mankind, both present and future generations.
• Minerals play a decisive role in the cultural, social, and economic development of mankind. Therefore, we have moral and social obligations to:
  • Conserve them
  • Avoid their misuse and waste
  • Preserve them for future use
• This can only be achieved through the adoption of conservation techniques. In India, conservation strategy is especially important due to the scarcity of certain important minerals. Conservation is crucial because of the ongoing technological revolution in the country, which will evolve better mining and processing technology in the future for the judicious exploitation of mineral resources.

Conservation Measures

There are three basic ways of conserving minerals for future use – reduce, recycle, reuse.

You can reduce the amount of waste you create by choosing what rubbish you throw away. Recycling means to return a waste product to a place where it is remade into either the same product or something different. The reuse of metals will also help in reducing the rate of consumption, and help in the conservation of minerals.

Apart from this, the following measures can be taken by the government:

• New researches should be undertaken to find out and develop ‘replacement minerals’ for us in place of scarce minerals which are in short supply and are going to be depleted soon.
• Researches should also be carried on to develop new technology which should avoid wastage and promote maximum utilization of by-products.
• There should be curbing on wasteful mining methods. Miners should be imparted training to adopt new techniques of mining, use the latest technology and machines, and take maximum precaution to cause little damage to the environment.
• There should be proper development of infrastructural facilities in mining areas, suite location for processing plants and refineries, and encouragement to private sectors to establish research units and adequate provision for financial support and loans.
• Processing plants should invariably be coated in mining areas to reduce transport costs. In the case of weighty materials like coal it is better to convert it into coking coal or in electricity near the pitheads.
• There is a great scope for the expansion of several mineral-based industries which open a new vista for economic development.
• New explorations should be carried on to find out locations and new areas of minerals using the latest technology. In the case of Indian seafloor, exploration and mining may yield a good dividend.

Distribution of Key Natural Resources in the World

General Distribution

Most countries in the world have natural resources, though the quantity and type vary. Economists state that natural resources add wealth to nations. Some countries, especially developing nations, have the availability of natural resources but do not fully utilize them due to lack of demand or technology. Transnational corporations (TNCs) often pay a fee to extract these resources and then export them to developed countries.

Australia

Mineral Resources:

• Major producer of minerals globally.
• Important minerals: bauxite, gold, iron ore, copper, lead, zinc, diamonds, mineral sands.
• Leader in uranium and gold mining, with the largest gold reserves in the world.
• Top producer of opal and aluminum.
• Major mining regions: Western Australia and Queensland.

Energy Resources:

• Huge deposits of coal, mainly in the Sydney and Bowen basins.
• Most coal is exported to Japan, Korea, Taiwan, and Western Europe.
• Natural gas is plentiful, used to heat homes and power vehicles.
• Major natural gas reserves: Western and central Australia.
• Natural gas pipelines transport gas to cities like Sydney and Melbourne; some exported to Japan.

Africa

• Rich in natural resources: diamonds, salt, gold, iron, cobalt, uranium, copper, bauxite, silver, petroleum, cocoa beans, woods, tropical fruits.

Russia

• Vast natural resources but industrial development was hindered by Siberian inaccessibility until the 20th century.
• Produces 20% of the world's natural gas, valuable oil commodity.
• Self-sufficient in all major industrial raw materials.
• Leading producer of aluminum, arsenic, cement, copper, magnesium, nitrogen, palladium, silicon, vanadium.
• Second-largest exporter of rare earth minerals.

Industrialized Nations

• Benefit over poor countries due to the ability to import needed resources.
• Use of natural resources is well-planned and constructive.
• Developed countries account for 25% of the world's population but use 75% of its natural resources.

Oil and Natural Gas Distribution

• About 70% of global conventional oil and natural gas reserves are concentrated in a "Strategic Ellipse" from the Middle East to North West Siberia.
• Main consuming regions (2004): North America, Austral-Asia, Europe (oil); North America, CIS, Europe (natural gas).
• Global natural gas reserves: 41% in the Middle East, 32% in CIS countries, 8% in Africa.

Iron Ore Resources

• USA: Rich in iron ore, mined in the Red Mountains and Birmingham Valley, Northern New Jersey, Utah, Nevada, and California.
• Canada: Main mining areas: Ontario, Quebec, Newfoundland. Rich in commodities like industrial minerals and energy minerals.
• Europe: Germany, France, Sweden, UK are large producers. Ukraine is the 6th largest producer with high-grade iron ore.
• South Africa: Major producer, with Transvaal being the main center. High-grade ore with significant reserves and annual production.

Distribution of key natural resources in South Asia

• When appraising the regions of South Asia, it has been found that these provinces have enormous natural resources and ecological and biological diversity. Many researchers have recognized that The Southeast Asian states today are rich in natural resources and are major world producers of rubber, tin, copra, palm oil, petroleum, and timber (Chia 1999). However, population growth and economic development are intimidating the region’s rich heritage through the expansion and intensification of agriculture, the unrestrained growth of industrialization, the destruction of natural homes, and urban extension. Southeast Asia has a lavish source of hydrocarbon resources natural gas and petroleum.
• China – China tops the list for having the most natural resources estimated to be worth $23 trillion. Ninety percent of China’s resources are coal and rare earth metals. However, timber is another major natural resource found in China. Other resources that China produces are antimony, coal, gold, graphite, lead, molybdenum, phosphates, tin, tungsten, vanadium, and zinc. China is the world’s second-largest producer of bauxite, cobalt, copper, manganese, and silver. It also has chromium and gem diamond.

Distribution of Key Mineral Resources in India

Ferrous Metals

Iron Ore –

• The value of annual iron ore production exceeds the combined output of all other ferrous and ferroalloy minerals. The bulk of this production is used in the manufacturing industry.
• Major iron-ore reserves in India occur in the peninsular plateau within crystalline schist rocks of Dharwar and Cuddapa systems.
• Mainly oxide form of iron-ores is widespread in India, of which by far hematite (Fe2O3) is most important, followed by Magnetite (Fe3O4) and Limonite (Fe3O4.2H2O). Carbonate iron ore, i.e., Siderite, is almost absent in India.
• Recent estimates revealed that the total amount of Indian iron-ore reserve is about 20,710 million tonnes, out of which 12,317 million tonnes may be classed as hematite and 540 million tonnes are of magnetite in grade. (Don’t mug these numbers- just remember the percentage of ore)
• Hematite varieties are generally abundant in the peninsular plateau; comprising Jharkhand, Orissa, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Goa, and Karnataka. Indian hematite is of very high grade, containing more than 70% ferrous content.
• Magnetite ores are abundant in the southern iron-ore producing states of Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, and Tamil Nadu. Indian magnetites are to some extent inferior in grade, compared to hematite, containing on an average 62% iron.
• India is one of the leading producers of iron ore in the world. Among the consuming industries, Cement Industry is the second major consumer of iron ore after the Iron & Steel industries (including Sponge Iron Industry).
• Generally, low-grade iron ore is used in the manufacture of cement. Iron ore improves the burning properties of cement. It imparts color and also balances the composition of cement.
• India is the world’s largest producer of sponge iron or Direct Induced Iron (DRI) with a host of coal-based units located in the mineral-rich states of the country.
• China is the world’s largest producer of pig iron. China is by far the largest producer, consumer, and importer of Iron ore.
• The production of iron ore was 200.95 million tonnes in the year 2017-18, showing an increase of about 3% as compared to that in the preceding year.
• Among the States, Odisha recorded the highest production of 102.17 million tonnes, i.e., about 50.84% of the country’s total production in 2017-18.
• However, the production of iron ore has not gradually increased.

Manganese:

• Like iron-ore, manganese ores are also abundant in the Dharwar and Kuddapa series of the Precambrian era. The total reserve of Indian manganese exceeds 406 million tonnes. Indian ores contain more than 50% manganese associated with lesser impurities. India ranks sixth in the world in manganese production.

Distribution:

• The bulk of the manganese is extracted from the mines of Orissa, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh, Goa, and Bihar.
• In Madhya Pradesh, the major manganese mining region is located in the districts of Balaghat, Chindwara, and Shahdol district. Manganese ores are widespread in the Singbhum district of Jharkhand. Maharashtra is also rich in manganese reserve.

Chromite:

• Chromite is an important Ferro-alloy used in the refractory and chemical industry.
• The total estimated chromite (FeCr2O3) reserve in India is more than 200 million tonnes.
• Important chromite deposits are found in the Cuttack and Keonjhar districts of Orissa, Chitradurga, Hassan, Shimoga districts of Karnataka, Bhandara, and Ratnagiri districts of Maharashtra, Singbhum district of Jharkhand, and several other small deposits in other states.

Tungsten:

• The major ore of tungsten is wolfram tri-oxide or WO3.
• The estimated reserve of tungsten is around 38.11 million tonnes.
• Chief producing areas are Rajasthan and Maharashtra.

Non – Ferrous Metals

Bauxite:

• Bauxite (Al2O3.2H2O), considered as the primary ore of aluminum, occurs in India in substantial amounts. Bauxite is found mainly in tertiary deposits and is associated with laterite rocks occurring extensively either on the plateau or hill ranges of peninsular India and also in the coastal tracts of the country.
• Bauxite is found in most countries, but the larger deposits occur in the tropics.
• According to the latest estimate, the total reserve of bauxite in the country is around 2,462 million tonnes.
• India ranks 5th in her bauxite production (annually) in the world and 7th largest bauxite reserves of the world.
• The state of Odisha is the largest producer of bauxite in India. The main deposits occur in Kalahandi, Korapur, Bolangir, Sundargarh, and Sambalpur districts. The smelting plants have been developed at Damanjoli and Doragurha.
• As the indigenous aluminum industry is still ill-developed, a large amount of bauxite is generally exported to the developed countries.
• Bauxite deposits are scattered in India in the states of Odhisa, Madhya Pradesh, Andhra Pradesh, Bihar, Goa, Gujarat, Karnataka, and several other states.
• The distributional pattern of bauxite deposits reveals close proximity of its location with iron ore deposits.
• Jharkhand ranks second in bauxite deposits where Palamau, Lohardaga, Ranchi, and Monghyr districts contain some prestigious bauxite mines.
• National Aluminium Company (NALCO) is a Navaratna PSU of the Government of India, which is Asia’s largest and the world’s seventh-largest producer of aluminum.

Copper:

• Major copper ores extracted in India are bornite, chalcopyrite, and tetrahedrite.
• Among these, according to volume and quality, chalcopyrite is the most important.
• Major copper-producing states in India are Madhya Pradesh (Malanjkhand belt), Rajasthan (Khetri-Singhana belt), and Jharkhand.
• Madhya Pradesh has become the largest producer of copper in India.
• The major copper mines are the Khetri copper belt in Rajasthan, Singhbhum copper belt in Jharkhand, and Malanjkhand copper belt in Madhya Pradesh which are mined by HCL.
• Hindustan Copper Limited (HCL) is a Central Public-Sector Enterprise (CPSE), Mini Ratna (Category-I) Schedule-A company. HCL is the only company in India engaged in the mining of copper ore, beneficiation, smelting & refining, and downstream products. HCL is listed on the BSE and NSE.
• Major copper-producing states in India are Madhya Pradesh (Malanjkhand belt), Rajasthan (Khetri-Singhana belt), and Jharkhand.
• Madhya Pradesh has become the largest producer of copper in India
• Khetri copper belt is in Rajasthan.
• Singhbhum copper belt is in Jharkhand.
• Malanjkhand copper belt is in Madhya Pradesh.

Lead and Zinc Ore

• Chief lead ore is Galena (PbS) and Sphalerite is the major zinc ore.
• The total combined reserve of lead and zinc ores are estimated at about 179 million tonnes, out of which 2.3 million tonnes of lead and 10 million tonnes of zinc may be classed as a recoverable reserve.
• Zinc ores are mostly found in places like Zawar, Balaria, Mochia Mogra of Rajasthan.
• Apart from zinc, lead deposits are also found at Dhanbad of Bihar and the South Arcot district of Tamil Nadu.

Non-Metallic Minerals

Gypsum:

• India has a vast reserve of gypsum, ranging from about 238 million tonnes.
• Gypsum deposits mostly occur in Bikaner, Jaisalmer, and Udaipur in Rajasthan and the Runn of Kutch in Gujarat.
• Apart from these two principal producing states, some gypsum also occurs in Tiruchirapalli in Tamil Nadu.
• The total Indian reserve of gypsum is around 239 million tonnes.

Mica:

The mica group of sheet silicate (phyllosilicate) minerals includes several closely related materials having nearly perfect basal cleavage. Mica is widely distributed and occurs in igneous, metamorphic, and sedimentary regimes. Large crystals of mica used for various applications are typically mined from granitic pegmatites.

• Andhra Pradesh is the largest producer of Mica in India followed by Rajasthan and Jharkhand.
• Nellore in AP is known for producing the largest quantity of crude mica.

Limestone:

Limestone is a sedimentary rock, composed mainly of skeletal fragments of marine organisms such as coral, forams, and molluscs. Its major materials are the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different crystal forms of calcium carbonate (CaCO3).

About 10% of sedimentary rocks are limestones. The solubility of limestone in water and weak acid solutions leads to karst landscapes, in which water erodes the limestone over thousands to millions of years. Most cave systems are through limestone bedrock.

Limestone has numerous uses: as a building material, an essential component of concrete (Portland cement), as aggregate for the base of roads, as white pigment or filler in products such as toothpaste or paints, as a chemical feedstock for the production of lime, as a soil conditioner, or as a popular decorative addition to rock gardens.

• Reserve of limestone is placed at 75,679 million tonnes. Limestone ores are widespread in several states.
• Leading production centers are located in Madhya Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, Gujarat, and Bihar.
• Limestone (CaCO3) is extensively used in the paper, cement, and fertilizer industries.
• Guntur, Kurnool, and Khammam districts of Andhra Pradesh, Gulbarga district of Karnataka, Raipur, and Jabalpur in Madhya Pradesh, and Son Valley of Bihar are the leading limestone- producing areas.

Dolomite:

It is an anhydrous carbonate mineral composed of calcium magnesium carbonate, ideally CaMg (CO3)2. The term is also used for a sedimentary carbonate rock composed mostly of the mineral dolomite. An alternative name sometimes used for the dolomitic rock type is dolostone.

• The dolomite reserve in India was identified as 4,387 million tonnes.
• It is mainly used in the production of iron & steel.
• Reserves are distributed over Orissa, Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh, Jharkhand, Rajsthan, Karnataka etc.

Cobalt

Cobalt is an important ferromagnetic strategic alloying metal having irreplaceable industrial applications. Cobalt is associated mostly with copper, nickel, and arsenic ores. Cobalt is extracted as a by-product of copper, nickel, zinc, or precious metals.

• The major use of cobalt is in metallurgical applications, in a special alloy/superalloy industry, in magnets and cutting tools industries. Cobalt is used as precursors (cobalt compounds) for cathodes in rechargeable batteries. The largest demand for cobalt has been from the Rechargeable Battery Industry.
• Cobalt powder finds an important application as a binder in the production of cemented tungsten carbides for heavy-duty and high-speed cutting tools. It is also used on bonded tools for Diamond Industry. Presently, there is no production of cobalt in the country from primary cobalt resources. The demand for cobalt is usually met through imports.

Energy Resources

Energy is required to perform various activities in every field. Heat and electricity are two different forms of energy. The most common sources of generating heat and electricity are firewood, coal, petroleum, and natural gas. These sources are called conventional sources of energy.

Conventional Sources of Energy

• The sources of energy have been in use for a long time, e.g., coal, petroleum, natural gas, and water power.
• They are exhaust able except for water.
• They cause pollution when used, as they emit smoke and ash.
• They are very expensive to be maintained, stored, and transmitted as they are carried over long distances through transmission grids and lines.

Non-Conventional Sources of Energy

• The resources are yet in the process of development over the past few years. It includes solar, wind, tidal, biogas, and biomass, geothermal.
• They are inexhaustible.
• They are generally pollution-free.
• Less expensive due to local use and easy to maintain.

Firewood:

Firewood is primarily used for cooking and heating. However, it is not a very convenient and eco-friendly source of energy. Collecting firewood and cooking with it is time-consuming and also burning firewood releases carbon monoxide in the air. This results in air pollution and higher levels of greenhouse gases. Firewood is also the main cause of deforestation.

Fossil Fuels:

Fossils are the remains of plants and animals that were buried under the earth for millions of years. Coal, petroleum, and natural gas are fossil fuels as they are formed from fossils.

Coal

Coal accounts for about 40% of the world’s electricity production, according to the International Energy Agency.

Coal is a combustible black or brownish-black sedimentary rock with a high amount of carbon and hydrocarbons. Coal is classified as a nonrenewable energy source because it takes millions of years to form. Coal contains the energy stored by plants that lived hundreds of millions of years ago in swampy forests.

• The plants were covered by layers of dirt and rock over millions of years. The resulting pressure and heat turned the plants into a substance now known as coal.
• Coal is classified into four main types, or ranks: anthracite, bituminous, lignite, and peat.
• The ranking depends on the types and amounts of carbon the coal contains and on the amount of heat energy the coal can produce. The rank of a coal deposit is determined by the amount of pressure and heat that acted on the plants over time.
• China, the US, India, Australia, and Indonesia are the top five coal-producing nations of the world.
• A large amount of good quality coal has already been mined out. At present only 10,000 million tonnes of coal in India may be regarded as good quality coal.

Indian coal deposits were formed in two distinctly separate geological periods, Gondwana and Tertiary. Among these the Gondwana variety is high-grade coal, ranging from bituminous to sub-bituminous, containing 60 to 80 percent carbon.

It was deposited between the permo-carboniferous to the cretaceous period. The Permian series coal is regarded as the best among the Gondwana coal series.

Among different coal-producing states of India, Jharkhand possesses the largest amount of coal, followed by Orissa, Madhya Pradesh, West Bengal, Andhra Pradesh, and Maharashtra.

Raniganj coalfield is located in West Bengal. The first coal mine was opened in 1774 at Raniganj. Jharia, Bokaro, Girdih, and Karanpura are the major coalfields in Jharkhand. Talcher field in Odisha ranks second in reserves (24,374 million tonnes) after Raniganj.

India is the 3rd largest producer of coal. Coal production stood at 676.51 million tonnes in FY18. India has the 5th largest estimated coal reserves in the world, standing at 308.802 billion tonnes in FY16.

There are four major types (Rank) of coal. Rank refers to steps in a slow, natural process called “coalification,” during which buried plant matter changes into an ever denser, drier, more carbon rich, and harder material. The four ranks are:

• Anthracite: The highest rank of coal. It is a hard, brittle, and black lustrous coal, often referred to as hard coal, containing a high percentage of fixed carbon and a low percentage of volatile matter.
• Bituminous: Bituminous coal is middle-rank coal between sub-bituminous and anthracite. Bituminous usually has a high heating (Btu) value and is the most common type of coal used in electricity generation in the United States. Bituminous coal appears shiny and smooth when you first see it but look closer and you may see it has layers.
• Subbituminous: Subbituminous coal is black in color and dull (not shiny), and has a higher heating value than lignite.
• Lignite: Lignite coal, aka brown coal, is the lowest grade coal with the least concentration of carbon.
• Peat is not actually coal, but rather the precursor to coal. Peat is a soft organic material consisting of partly decayed plant and, in some cases, deposited mineral matter. When peat is placed under high pressure and heat, it becomes coal.

Petroleum and Natural Gas

Petroleum, meaning rock oil, is found between layers of rocks in the form of a thick black liquid. In its raw form, petroleum is called crude oil, which is drilled from oil fields located in offshore and coastal areas. The major petroleum-producing countries in the world are Iran, Iraq, Saudi Arabia, and Qatar.

Advantages of Petroleum:

• Easily transported in tankers
• Compact and convenient liquid fuel
• Revolutionized transportation on land, air, and water
• Can be transported efficiently by pipelines
• Emits very little smoke and leaves no ash
• Used up to the last drop
• Provides important lubricating agents
• Raw material for various petrochemical products

Formation of Fossil Fuels

Millions of years ago, algae and plants lived in shallow seas. After dying and sinking to the seafloor, the organic material mixed with other sediments and was buried. Over millions of years, under high pressure and high temperature, the remains of these organisms transformed into fossil fuels, including coal, natural gas, and petroleum.

Extraction and Composition of Petroleum

Today, petroleum is found in vast underground reservoirs where ancient seas were located. Petroleum reservoirs can be beneath land or the ocean floor. Crude oil is extracted with giant drilling machines. Crude oil varies in color, indicating distinct chemical compositions of different supplies. It is used to make gasoline and thousands of different items like tires, refrigerators, life jackets, and anesthetics.

When petroleum products such as gasoline are burned for energy, they release toxic gases and high amounts of carbon dioxide, a greenhouse gas. This adversely affects our climate.

Composition of Crude Oil:

• Hydrocarbons: Hydrogen (13%) and Carbon (85%)
• Other elements: Nitrogen (0.5%), Sulfur (0.5%), Oxygen (1%), and metals such as Iron, Nickel, and Copper (less than 0.1%)

Variations in Hydrocarbons

The way molecules are organized in hydrocarbons is due to the original composition of the algae, plants, or plankton from millions of years ago. The amount of heat and pressure the plants were exposed to also contributes to variations in hydrocarbons and crude oil.

Light oils can contain up to 97% hydrocarbons, while heavier oils and bitumens might contain only 50% hydrocarbons and larger quantities of other elements. It is almost always necessary to refine crude oil to make useful products.

Classification of Oil

Oil is classified according to three main categories:

1. Geographic location where it was drilled
2. Sulfur content
3. API gravity (a measure of density)

Primary Sources of Crude Oil:

1. Brent Crude: Mixture from 15 different oil fields between Scotland and Norway in the North Sea, supplying most of Europe.
2. West Texas Intermediate (WTI): Lighter oil produced mostly in Texas, USA. Considered high quality.
3. Dubai Crude: Also known as Fateh or Dubai-Oman crude, a light, sour oil produced in Dubai, UAE, and Oman. Used as a reference for pricing Persian Gulf oils exported to Asia.

OPEC Reference Basket

The OPEC Reference Basket is the average price of petroleum from OPEC’s 12 member countries: Algeria, Angola, Ecuador, Iran, Iraq, Kuwait, Libya, Nigeria, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, and Venezuela.

Classification: Sulfur Content

• Sulfur is considered an “impurity” in petroleum. Sulfur in crude oil can corrode metal in the refining process and contribute to air pollution. Petroleum with more than 0.5% sulfur is called “sour,” while petroleum with less than 0.5% sulfur is “sweet.”
• Sweet oil is usually much more valuable than sour because it does not require as much refining and is less harmful to the environment.

Classification: API Gravity

• The American Petroleum Institute (API) is a trade association for businesses in the oil and natural gas industries. The API has established accepted systems of standards for a variety of oil- and gas-related products, such as gauges, pumps, and drilling machinery. The API has also established several units of measurement. The “API unit,” for instance, measures gamma radiation in a borehole (a shaft drilled into the ground).
• API gravity is a measure of the density of petroleum liquid compared to water. If a petroleum liquid’s API gravity is greater than 10, it is “light,” and floats on top of the water. If the API gravity is less than 10, it is “heavy,” and sinks in water.

Light oils are preferred because they have a higher yield of hydrocarbons. Heavier oils have greater concentrations of metals and sulfur and require more refining.

Oil and Gas Industry

• The oil and gas sector is among the eight core industries in India and plays a major role in influencing decision making for all the other important sections of the economy.
• India’s economic growth is closely related to energy demand; therefore, the need for oil and gas is projected to grow more, thereby making the sector quite conducive for investment.
• The Government of India has adopted several policies to fulfill the increasing demand. The government has allowed 100 percent Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) in many segments of the sector, including natural gas, petroleum products, and refineries, among others. Today, it attracts both domestic and foreign investment, as attested by the presence of Reliance Industries Ltd (RIL) and Cairn India.
• India is expected to be one of the largest contributors to non-OECD petroleum consumption growth globally. Oil imports rose sharply to US$ 87.37 billion in 2017-18 from US$ 70.72 billion in 2016-17. India retained its spot as the third-largest consumer of oil in the world in 2017 with consumption of 4.69 mbpd of oil in 2017, compared to 4.56 mbpd in 2016.
• India was the fourth-largest Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) importer in 2017 after Japan, South Korea, and China. LNG imports increased to 26.11 bcm in 2017-18 from 24.48 bcm in 2016-17.
• Gas pipeline infrastructure in the country stood at nearly 16000 km at the beginning of 2019.
• According to data released by the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT), the petroleum and natural gas sector attracted FDI worth US$ 7.018 billion between April 2000 and March 2019.

Following are some of the major investments and developments in the oil and gas sector:

• In September 2018, the Government of Gujarat selected Energy Infrastructure Limited (EIL), a subsidiary of the Netherlands-based Energy Infrastructure Butano (Asia) BV, to set up a Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG) terminal at Okha with an investment of Rs 700 crore (US$ 104.42 million).
• Foreign investors will have opportunities to invest in projects worth US$ 300 billion in India, as the country looks to cut reliance on oil imports by 10 percent by 2022, according to Mr. Dharmendra Pradhan, Minister of Petroleum and Natural Gas, Government of India.
• Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC) is going to invest Rs 17,615 crore (US$ 2.73 billion) in drilling oil and gas wells in 2018-19.
• As of March 2019, Brookfield is going to acquire Reliance Gas Transportation Infrastructure, now known as East-West Pipeline (EWPL) for Rs 13,000 crore (US$ 1.80 billion).

Some of the major initiatives taken by the Government of India to promote the oil and gas sector are:

• The Government of India is planning to set up around 5,000 compressed biogas (CBG) plants by 2023.
• The government of India is planning to invest Rs 70,000 crore (US$ 9.97 billion) to expand the gas pipeline network across the country.
• In September 2018, the Government of India approved fiscal incentives to attract investments and technology to improve recovery from oil fields which is expected to lead to hydrocarbon production worth Rs 50 lakh crore (US$ 745.82 billion) in the next twenty years.
• State-run oil firms are planning investments worth Rs 723 crore (US$ 111.30 million) in Uttar Pradesh to improve the liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) infrastructure in a bid to promote clean energy and generate employment, according to Mr. Dharmendra Pradhan, Minister of Petroleum and Natural Gas, Government of India.
• The Oil Ministry plans to set up bio-CNG (compressed natural gas) plants and allied infrastructure at a cost of Rs 7,000 crore (US$ 1.10 billion) to promote the use of clean fuel.

Road Ahead

• The energy demand of India is anticipated to grow faster than the energy demand of all major economies, on the back of continued robust economic growth. Consequently, India’s energy demand as a percentage of global energy demand is expected to rise to 11 percent in 2040 from 5.58 percent in 2017.
• Crude oil consumption is expected to grow at a CAGR of 3.60 percent to 500 million tonnes by 2040 from 221.76 million tonnes in 2017.
• Natural Gas consumption is forecasted to increase at a CAGR of 4.31 percent to 143.08 million tonnes by 2040 from 54.20 million tonnes in 2017

Indian Strategic Petroleum Reserve

The Indian Strategic Petroleum Reserve (ISPR) is an emergency fuel store totaling 5.33 MMT (million metric tons) or 36.92 MMbbl (million barrels) of strategic crude oil, enough to provide 10 days of consumption. These reserves are maintained by the Indian Strategic Petroleum Reserves Limited.

Locations:

• Mangalore
• Visakhapatnam
• Padur (near Udupi)

All these locations are on the east and west coasts of India and are readily accessible to the refineries. These strategic storages are in addition to the existing storages of crude oil and petroleum products with oil companies and serve as a response to external supply disruptions.

Expansion:

Recently, the government approved the construction of two more strategic petroleum reserves:

• Chandikhol in Odisha
• Rajasthan

These will have an aggregate capacity of 6.5 million tonnes, increasing the strategic reserve capacity to 15.33 million tons.

Pipelines

Pipelines are a convenient, efficient, and economical mode of transporting liquids such as petroleum, petroleum products, natural gas, water, milk, and even solids after converting them into slurry.

Advantages of Pipelines:

1. Suited for Liquids and Gases: Ideally suited for transporting liquids and gases.
2. Difficult Terrains: Can be laid through difficult terrains and underwater.
3. Low Energy Consumption: Involves very low energy consumption.
4. Low Maintenance: Requires very little maintenance.
5. Safety: Safe, accident-free, and environmentally friendly.

Disadvantages of Pipelines:

1. Inflexibility: Can only be used for a few fixed points.
2. Capacity Limitation: Capacity cannot be increased once it is laid.
3. Security Issues: Difficult to make security arrangements.
4. Maintenance Challenges: Underground pipelines are hard to repair and detect leaks.

Major Pipelines in India:

Naharkatia-Nunmati-Barauni Pipeline:

• First pipeline constructed in India.
• Connects Naharkatia oilfield to Nunmati and then to Barauni refinery in Bihar.
• Extended to Kanpur, U.P.
• Length: 1,167 km.

Mumbai High-Mumbai-Ankleshwar-Kayoli Pipeline:

• Connects Mumbai High oilfields and Gujarat to Koyali refinery.
• Length: 210 km (double pipeline from Mumbai to Mumbai High).

Salaya-Koyali-Mathura Pipeline:

• Connects Salaya in Gujarat to Mathura, U.P.
• Extended to Panipat refinery in Haryana and Jalandhar, Punjab.
• Length: 1,256 km.

Hajira-Bijapur-Jagdishpur (HBJ) Gas Pipeline:

• Constructed by Gas Authority of India Limited (GAIL).
• Connects Hazira (Maharashtra) to Bijapur (M.P.) and Jagdishpur (U.P.).
• Length: 1,750 km.
• Carries 18 million cubic meters of gas daily.

Jamnagar-Loni LPG Pipeline:

• Constructed by GAIL.
• Connects Jamnagar (Gujarat) to Loni (near Delhi, U.P.).
• Length: 1,269 km.
• Longest LPG pipeline in the world.

Kandla-Bhatinda Pipeline:

• Proposed pipeline for transporting crude oil to Bhatinda refinery.
• Length: 1,331 km.

Proposed Pipelines:

• Kalol-Sabarmati Crude Pipeline
• Nawgam-Kalol-Koyali Crude Pipeline
• Cambay-Dhiwaran Gas Pipeline
• Ankleshwar-Uttaran Gas Pipeline
• Ankleshwar-Vadodara Associated Gas Pipeline
• Koyali-Ahmedabad Products Pipeline
• Mumbai-Pune-Manmad Pipeline
• Haldia-Kolkata Pipeline

Thorium

India has significant reserves of thorium. The Atomic Minerals Directorate for Exploration and Research (AMD) has established 11.93 million tonnes of in situ resources of Monazite (thorium-bearing mineral), containing about 1.07 million tonnes of thorium.

Utilization:

• Thorium cannot be directly used as nuclear fuel like uranium.
• Thorium, combined with uranium or plutonium, becomes a sustainable energy resource in the third stage of the nuclear fuel cycle.
• Offers better fuel performance characteristics and lower inventory of long-lived nuclear waste compared to uranium.

Gas Hydrates

Gas hydrates are a crystalline form of methane and water, existing in shallow sediments of outer continental margins. They are envisioned as a major future energy resource.

Potential Locations:

• Krishna-Godavari (KG) Basin (East Coast)
• Mahanadi Basin (East Coast)
• Kerala-Konkan Basin (West Coast)
• Andaman Offshore

Exploration:

• Multichannel seismic data has identified promising sites in the KG and Mahanadi basins.
• Development of technology for environmentally safe recovery is essential for energy security.

Renewable Energy Resources

• Non-conventional energy resources or Renewable Energy resources are basically those resources that can be used to harness energy in different forms rather than conventional fossil fuels and nuclear energy.
• Non-conventional energy resources are ecofriendly and do not have adverse effects on the environment. They are also renewable, i.e. over the years, these sources are renewed. The non-conventional energy resources include solar energy, tidal energy, wind energy, energy from biomass, and geothermal energy.