Coal India's non-power supply increases 4.4% till January

Kolkata: Coal India's dry fuel supply to the non-power sector had expanded by 4.4 per cent till January of the current fiscal in contrast to a decline of 6.8 per cent to the power sector for the same period.

The muted demand from power plants and sufficient stock of coal had resulted in lower demand.

To combat the slowdown in sale, CIL was channelising more coal to the non-power sector.

"CIL's supplies to non-power sector registered a growth of 4.4 per cent at 95.45 million tonne in the April- January period of FY20," a senior Coal India official said on Thursday.

CIL's coal supply to the power sector registered a decline of 6.8 per cent to 377.86 million tonnes in the April-January period of the ongoing fiscal.

CIL has allocated more rakes to supply to non-power consumers and liquidated over 82 per cent of its "arrear rakes" during the ongoing fiscal, the official said.

These backlog rakes for CIL pertains to 2017-18 and 2018-19.

The combined coal stock, at CIL's own pitheads and at coal linkage based thermal power plants of the country, stands at a comfortable 78.25 million tonnes.

Coal stock at power plants increased to a decade high of 36.36 million tonne as of February 24, an average 20 day stock.

Coal stocks at pitheads stood at 41.63 milion tonne to meet the power sector's supplies when the demand picks up.