India's first integrated CCUS field laboratory opens at IIT Bombay; CO₂ storage drilling begins in Deccan Traps basalt
On 11 May 2026 Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan inaugurated India's first integrated Carbon Capture, Utilisation and Storage (CCUS) field laboratory at IIT Bombay under Bharat Innovates 2026.
Summary
India's first integrated Carbon Capture, Utilisation and Storage (CCUS) field laboratory was inaugurated at IIT Bombay by Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan on 11 May 2026 under Bharat Innovates 2026. The event commissioned an indigenously built Carbon Capture and Utilisation pilot plant of up to 3 tonnes per day and began Geological CO₂ Sequestration drilling in basalt, India's first pilot-scale scientific drilling to assess the storage potential of the Deccan Traps. The capture technology is being scaled up by UrjanovaC, a deep-tech start-up incubated at IIT Bombay's Society for Innovation & Entrepreneurship (SINE). Pradhan linked CCUS to India's Panchamrit commitments and its Net Zero target of 2070.
Key facts
- Facility
- India's first end-to-end CCUS field laboratory, IIT Bombay
- Inaugurated
- 11 May 2026 by Dharmendra Pradhan, under Bharat Innovates 2026
- CCU pilot
- Indigenous, up to 3 tonnes of CO₂ per day
- Storage
- First pilot-scale drilling to assess CO₂ storage in Deccan Traps basalt
- Start-up
- UrjanovaC, incubated at SINE, IIT Bombay
- Goal
- Net Zero by 2070
Practice MCQs 2 questions
India's first integrated CCUS field laboratory was inaugurated on 11 May 2026 at which institution?
Show answer
Correct answer: A — IIT Bombay
Dharmendra Pradhan inaugurated India's first integrated CCUS field laboratory at IIT Bombay under Bharat Innovates 2026.
The geological CO₂ sequestration drilling begun under the IIT Bombay CCUS field laboratory assesses storage potential in which rock formation?
Show answer
Correct answer: C — Basalt of the Deccan Traps
The project is India's first pilot-scale scientific drilling to assess CO₂ storage in basalt formations of the Deccan Traps.