Coal India powers May output by 3.9%, off-take by 4.3%

The coal major produced 42.58 Million Tonnes (mt) of coal during May 2016 against 41 mt same month last fiscal, registering a growth of 3.9%. Coal off-take was 45.53 mt for the month of May 2016 against 43.80 mt on a month-on-month comparison, the growth being 4%. Average coal loading also improved during May 2016, as CIL as a whole loaded 213.3 rakes/day against 206.1 rakes/day same month last year, with a growth of 3.5%. 

Coal production and coal supplies for the period April-May 2016 also witnessed positive yet, modest growth. Progressively, production was 82.93 mt end of May 2016 against 82.51mt same period last year while coal off-take was 88.23 mt ending two-month period of the current fiscal against 87.32 mt on similar comparison. 

Coal fired power utilities across the country continue to have adequate stocks with no utility in critical or supercritical condition. 

Coal stock at power utilities ending May 2016 stood at 32.65 mt which is 22 days.  Coal stock depletion at coal fired power utilities of the country has been 6.23 mt stock ending May 2016. The progressive depletion should help CIL, as it would pave way for the company to increase its despatches to the utilities in future. The company was also able to bring down its pithead stock by 5.07 mt in two months of the fiscal. CIL started the fiscal 2015-16 with a pithead stock of 57.64 mt which stood at 52.57 mt end of May 2016. 

Earlier, CIL has announced nearly 6.3 per cent increase in coal prices that will earn an additional revenue of around Rs 3,234 crore during the current fiscal 2016-17. The decision was taken at the Coal India Ltd board meeting yesterday, the company said in a filing to BSE. “The Board of Directors of the Company at its meeting held on May 28, 2016 has approved revision of coal prices w.e.f. 00:00 hours of May 30, 2016 appx. 6.29% increase over the current price,” the filing said.

It will be applicable to all CIL subsidiaries and NEC for regulated and non-regulated sectors, the filing said. Due to this revision, CIL will earn additional revenue of Rs 3,234 crores for the balance period of financial year 2016-17 -- from May 30, 2016 to March 31, 2017, it said. According to a Coal India official, on an average the current coal price is Rs 1,193 per tonne. 

The board has also approved the differential price for Non-Regulated Sector at a reduced rate of 20 per cent over the price of Regulated Sector for G6 to G17 grades of coal for all subsidiaries of CIL, the company said.