New Delhi, April 17 (IANS): The coal ministry has approved transfer of the existing coal linkage of the Panipat thermal power plant to a new super-critical plant to be set up at the same location, it said on Friday.

"The decision has been taken on the basis of recommendations of the Standing Linkage Committee (Long Term) which considered the request of the Haryana government," the ministry said in a statement here.

The government last year formulated a policy for the automatic transfer of coal linkage in cases of replacing old thermal plants with the more energy-efficient super-critical plants.

Under this policy, coal linkage to the old plant is to be automatically transferred to a new plant of the nearest super-critical capacity.

If the capacity of the new plant is higher than the old plant, additional coal may be granted on priority, subject to the availability of coal from state-miner Coal India.

At the Panipat power station, inefficient and uneconomical units 1 to 4 -- each of capacity 110 MW -- shall be replaced by setting up more efficient super-critical units of 660 and 800 MW capacity within the same premises by way of simultaneous phasing out of units 1 to 4 during the next 4-5 years.