Coal-Seam-Methane (CSM) natural gas that has evolved from and is adsor
bed by coal seams is a potential source of unconventional energy World
over. In India, the major part of this resource is contained in five
coal-bearing areas, broadly across the eastern quadrant. This paper pr
esents the results of a detailed subsurface geological analysis of the
potential Gondwana coal bearing areas such as Raniganj, Jharia, Bokar
o, Karanpura and petroliferous basins of West Bengal for CSM explorati
on and exploitation. The correlations of coal rank and depth with gas
content were used along with coal volume to determine CSM in-place. Mo
re than 150 Tcf (Trillion cubic feet) of CSM has been estimated for Go
ndwana basins of India, of which 25 to 75% may be recovered depending
on the number of seams completed in, the size of the stimulation, well
spacing and pattern of alignment.