# Is wood really cheaper than pet coke for the same heat in a Panipat textile unit?

Canonical: https://senseible.earth/answers/panipat-pet-coke-or-wood-cheaper-per-gigajoule

At the Panipat survey prices of 2014-15, wood cost about rupees (Rs) 141 to 192 for each gigajoule (GJ) of heat and pet coke about Rs 246 to 262, using Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) default heat values. At the IPCC low wood value and an unchanged price, wood costs Rs 278 to 380, more than pet coke.

## Check the rules first

Panipat is in the National Capital Region, where rules on which fuels industry may burn have tightened since 2014-15. Check what is approved for your area with the Haryana State Pollution Control Board before you compare prices.

## Compare heat, not tonnes

A tonne of wood and a tonne of pet coke are not the same size of fuel. Pet coke packs more heat, so it should cost more a tonne. The fair comparison is the price of the heat you get. A GJ is a standard unit of heat energy, as a litre is a standard unit of water. Net calorific value is the usable heat in each tonne of fuel, after the heat that goes into boiling off its water.

## The inputs, each from its source

- Prices in the Panipat survey of 2014-15 by The Energy and Resources Institute (TERI): pet coke from distributors Rs 8,000 to 8,500 a tonne; wood or biomass from the local market Rs 2,200 to 3,000 a tonne, with seasonal variation with moisture.
- IPCC default net calorific values, in terajoules for each gigagram, which is the same as GJ a tonne: petroleum coke 32.5 (range 29.7 to 41.9); wood or wood waste 15.6 (range 7.90 to 31.0).
- The price row covers wood and other biomass; we use the IPCC wood value only.

## Why the answer is not simple

The wood heat value swings widely because wet wood carries water that must be boiled off. TERI says the wood price itself moved with moisture. At the IPCC low limit of 7.9 GJ a tonne, the same Rs 2,200 to 3,000 buys heat at Rs 278 to 380 a GJ, which is dearer than pet coke. At the upper limit of 31.0 it is Rs 71 to 97. The IPCC range is for wood or wood waste in general, not a measure of very wet wood. Our reading: wetter wood usually sells cheaper, so keeping the price unchanged at the low limit is a worst case.

The comparison also leaves out boiler efficiency, labour, ash and storage. The survey prices are more than ten years old. Use your own invoices and a weighed, tested sample of your wood.

## And the carbon

Pet coke is a hard black fuel left over from refining oil. At IPCC defaults it gives about 3.17 tonnes of carbon dioxide (CO2) for each tonne burnt. The Greenhouse Gas (GHG) Protocol says direct CO2 from burning biomass shall not be included in Scope 1 (the fuel you burn yourself) but reported separately.

## Example: cost of one gigajoule at the survey prices

- Pet coke: 8,000 ÷ 32.5 = Rs 246 and 8,500 ÷ 32.5 = Rs 262 for each GJ
- Wood at the IPCC default of 15.6: 2,200 ÷ 15.6 = Rs 141 and 3,000 ÷ 15.6 = Rs 192 for each GJ
- Pet coke costs about 1.3 to 1.9 times as much (246 ÷ 192 = 1.28 and 262 ÷ 141 = 1.85)
- Wood at the IPCC low limit of 7.90: 2,200 ÷ 7.9 = Rs 278 and 3,000 ÷ 7.9 = Rs 380 for each GJ

Example only, at the survey year’s prices and IPCC defaults. Today’s prices and your own fuel tests decide the real answer.

## What Senseible does here

Senseible reads your fuel invoices into monthly records, so you can see the tonnes and the rupees you actually paid for each fuel. Put those beside these survey prices. It does not test a fuel’s heat value, so that needs a lab sample.

- [Green loan readiness check](https://senseible.earth/green-loan-check)
- [Panipat fuels and carbon](https://senseible.earth/answers/panipat-textile-cluster-fuels-and-carbon)
- [Surat lignite or imported coal, cheaper per heat](https://senseible.earth/answers/surat-lignite-or-imported-coal-cheaper-per-million-kcal)
- [Fuel bought without a tax invoice](https://senseible.earth/answers/fuel-bought-without-gst-invoice)

Sources: [TERI, Energy Profile: Panipat Textile Cluster, 2016 (SAMEEEKSHA)](https://sameeeksha.org/pdf/clusterprofile/PanipatTextileCluster.pdf), [IPCC, 2006 Guidelines for National Greenhouse Gas Inventories, Volume 2, Energy](https://www.ipcc-nggip.iges.or.jp/public/2006gl/vol2.html), [Greenhouse Gas Protocol, Corporate Accounting and Reporting Standard](https://ghgprotocol.org/corporate-standard)

Last reviewed 2026-11-07. Prices are from the Panipat survey of 2014-15 and are old. IPCC values are defaults with wide ranges for wood. Check today’s prices and your own fuel before you decide.