Coal India Ltd's April 1-August 22 despatch to power sector up 13%

Kolkata: Coal India Ltd's despatch to the power sector between April 1 and August 22 rose 13 per cent on-year to 186.92 million tonnes, company officials said on Thursday.

The state-run miner said the increased supply has helped bring down the number of plants in the list of critical stock from the level of 30 as on April 1 to 14 as on August 20, they said.

Mining activities typically pass through a low phase of production during the monsoon season with incessant rains hampering operations at open cast mines.

"Yet, CIL despatched over 21 MT more to the power sector during the current year and the mines are still holding a pothead stock of over 26 million. There is no shortage of coal with CEIL, and supplies will get a boost as the monsoon recedes and production picks up," a CIL official said.

In West Bengal, none of the power plants fall in the critical stock category, as per a CEA report dated August 20.

The mining behemoth supplied 57.25 million tonnes of coal to NTPC Ltd during the period under review with 94 per cent materialisation level, registering a growth of over 4 per cent on a year-on-year basis. With majority of NTPC plants situated at the potheads and based on captive modes of transport, there is no major issue for movement of coal, CIL said.

Meanwhile, according to a report, Non-coking coal consumption is likely to grow at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 5.4 per cent to 1,076 million tonne (MT) in fiscal year 2022-23, from 826 MT in fiscal year 2017-18, driven by a 6.5 per cent growth in coal-based power generation. The domestic supply is also expected to clock a CAGR of 7 per cent to 931 MT in FY23, from 664 MT in FY18.