MCRL's 1st phase may start in 2022
Bhubaneswar: The 14-km long phase-I (Angul-Balaram) of Mahanadi Coal Railway Limited (MCRL) is expected to be operationalised by 2022, an official statement said.
This will help in faster evacuation of coal from MCL mines in Odisha's Talcher Coalfields.
The MCRL's Phase-II (Balram-Jarpada-Tentuloi) of 54 Km is expected to be commissioned by December 2025 and it will provide connectivity to allocated coal blocks on the southern side and central part of Talcher Coalfields, it said.
Noting that the Phase-II construction work is progressing rapidly, the statement said that notification for land acquisition and forestry clearances have been obtained. This railway line will cater to evacuation of coal from Coal India Limited and non-CIL Coal Blocks in Talcher Coalfields.
The MCRL rail corridor will be a game changer in the evacuation of coal from Talcher coalfields, it said adding that the facility (rail corridor) will improve faster movement of coal rakes to Paradip and Damra ports thereby decongesting rail network. This will also reduce transportation cost considerably. Shipping routes are much cheaper compared to rail network and improves coal availability in southern and western region of the country, the statement said.
Talcher Coalfields of Mahanadi Coalfield is one of the largest with about 52 BT of coal resources, which is 15 per cent of total prognosticated coal resources in the country. Of the available resources in Talcher Coalfield, more than 63 per cent (33 BT) lies within 300 metre depth, presenting significant potential for open cast mining.
Talcher coalfields has produced more than 95 Million Tonne (MT) coal during FY22 and likely to produce about 200 MT in FY 2024-25 and about 300 by FY 2030 from Mahanadi Coalfields Limited and allocated coal blocks. To ensure efficient coal evacuation, construction of rail line started in a phased manner in Talcher Coalfields namely MCRL (Mahanadi Coal Railway Limited), it said.
The Ministry of Coal has identified construction of MCRL Phase I & II project as high Impact project under PM Gatishakti. MCRL was incorporated on August 31, 2015 with 64 per cent share of Mahanadi Coalfields Limited, 26 per cent of IRCON and 10 per cent share of Industrial Development Corporation of Odisha.
