Following his talks with unions to end the Coal India workers' strike, Coal and Power Minister Piyush Goyal is doubly confident of the state miner achieving its production target of a million tonnes of coal by 2019.
"What I am most confident about that can actually happen, more so after my night before yesterday's meeting with the union leaders, is that Coal India will reach its target of doubling its production by 2019," Goyal said.
"They (unions) gave me a number of specific and valuable suggestions, for instance, how 11 million tonnes could be produced from a particular mine if environment clearance was taken, or on checking theft of coal," he added.
The power ministry listed coal workers calling off their nationwide strike as a major achievement of the first 200 days of the NDA government.
"Coal India (CIL) will be protected and there need be no apprehension about its ownership or management going into private hands," Goyal told media persons after a marathon six-hour-long meeting here with union leaders.
The unionised miners have promised to help make up for the loss, he added.
Pointing out how the ordinance on reallocation and auction of 204 coal blocks cancelled in September by the Surpeme Court will change the power generation scenario, Goyal said the process of e-auction was the "first true test" of the government's ability to transit seamlessly from the old system of allotment of mines to their auctioning.
"A 100-odd blocks are going to be out by June. We're focusing on the first 42 mines in March," the minister said of the auction time-table.
"By March, when the auctions are through and bankers see more coal production, it will also resolve issues of financing of the sector," Goyal added.
Saying it was Prime Minister Narendra Modi's support which helped him "bite the bullet" on the ordinance with the enabling provisions for commercial mining of coal, Goyal said that production grew by over 14 percent in October-November last year. Electricity generation also witnessed double-digit growth over the same period, at 10.2 percent.
Pointing out the capital needs of the power sector, Ratul Puri, chairman Hindustan Power projects, said that to ensure capital availability for the sector over $200 billion of investment was required during the 13th Plan period beginning 2017.
"Over Rs.10 lakh (1 million) crore of debt needs to be taken on, where the banking system's cumulative outstandings are around 20 lakh crore. Banks cannot meet this challenge without policy intervention," Puri said.
Coal imports surged 19% to 210.55 mt in 2014
India’s coal imports surged 19 per cent last year to 210.55 million tonnes (MT) on demand from power sector, but the just concluded coal industry strike is unlikely to cause a further spurt, according to online marketplace mjunction. India had imported 176.97 MT of coal in 2013.
“Of the total imports during the year, steam coal stood at 162.96 MT, up 22 per cent from 133.54 MT imported in 2013 whereas coking coal imports in 2014 rose to 37.06 MT, up 4.04 per cent from 35.62 MT in 2013,” said mjunction Chief Executive Officer (CEO) and Managing Director (MD) Viresh Oberoi. Scotching fears of further rise in imports due to ongoing strike by Coal India, Oberoi said, “We do not see any spurt in import because of that, but import is likely to be slightly higher compared to December 2014 going by past trend.”
There was also a sharp increase in imports of anthracite coal, pulverised coal (PCI), metallurgical coal and petroleum coke last year, he added. mjunction collates its data based on monitoring of vessels’ positions and from shipping companies.
Imports of anthracite surged to 1.62 MT from 0.75 MT while PCI imports spurted to 2.14 MT in 2014 from 1.89 MT in 2013.
India imported 2.66 MT metallurgical coke in 2014 from 2.39 MT in 2013. Petroleum coke imports surged to 4.11 MT in 2014 from 2.78 MT a year ago.
During the first nine months of current fiscal, imports of coal stood at 167.60 MT, up 20.89 per cent from 138.64 MT imported during the corresponding period of the last fiscal, Oberoi said.
“Imports of steam coal during the nine months of 2014-15 stood at 131.73 MT, up 24.87 per cent from 105.49 MT recorded in the same period of 2013-14 while coking coal imports stood at 28.47 MT, up marginally from 27.21 mt during the period under review,” he added.
"What I am most confident about that can actually happen, more so after my night before yesterday's meeting with the union leaders, is that Coal India will reach its target of doubling its production by 2019," Goyal said.
"They (unions) gave me a number of specific and valuable suggestions, for instance, how 11 million tonnes could be produced from a particular mine if environment clearance was taken, or on checking theft of coal," he added.
The power ministry listed coal workers calling off their nationwide strike as a major achievement of the first 200 days of the NDA government.
"Coal India (CIL) will be protected and there need be no apprehension about its ownership or management going into private hands," Goyal told media persons after a marathon six-hour-long meeting here with union leaders.
The unionised miners have promised to help make up for the loss, he added.
Pointing out how the ordinance on reallocation and auction of 204 coal blocks cancelled in September by the Surpeme Court will change the power generation scenario, Goyal said the process of e-auction was the "first true test" of the government's ability to transit seamlessly from the old system of allotment of mines to their auctioning.
"A 100-odd blocks are going to be out by June. We're focusing on the first 42 mines in March," the minister said of the auction time-table.
"By March, when the auctions are through and bankers see more coal production, it will also resolve issues of financing of the sector," Goyal added.
Saying it was Prime Minister Narendra Modi's support which helped him "bite the bullet" on the ordinance with the enabling provisions for commercial mining of coal, Goyal said that production grew by over 14 percent in October-November last year. Electricity generation also witnessed double-digit growth over the same period, at 10.2 percent.
Pointing out the capital needs of the power sector, Ratul Puri, chairman Hindustan Power projects, said that to ensure capital availability for the sector over $200 billion of investment was required during the 13th Plan period beginning 2017.
"Over Rs.10 lakh (1 million) crore of debt needs to be taken on, where the banking system's cumulative outstandings are around 20 lakh crore. Banks cannot meet this challenge without policy intervention," Puri said.
Coal imports surged 19% to 210.55 mt in 2014
India’s coal imports surged 19 per cent last year to 210.55 million tonnes (MT) on demand from power sector, but the just concluded coal industry strike is unlikely to cause a further spurt, according to online marketplace mjunction. India had imported 176.97 MT of coal in 2013.
“Of the total imports during the year, steam coal stood at 162.96 MT, up 22 per cent from 133.54 MT imported in 2013 whereas coking coal imports in 2014 rose to 37.06 MT, up 4.04 per cent from 35.62 MT in 2013,” said mjunction Chief Executive Officer (CEO) and Managing Director (MD) Viresh Oberoi. Scotching fears of further rise in imports due to ongoing strike by Coal India, Oberoi said, “We do not see any spurt in import because of that, but import is likely to be slightly higher compared to December 2014 going by past trend.”
There was also a sharp increase in imports of anthracite coal, pulverised coal (PCI), metallurgical coal and petroleum coke last year, he added. mjunction collates its data based on monitoring of vessels’ positions and from shipping companies.
Imports of anthracite surged to 1.62 MT from 0.75 MT while PCI imports spurted to 2.14 MT in 2014 from 1.89 MT in 2013.
India imported 2.66 MT metallurgical coke in 2014 from 2.39 MT in 2013. Petroleum coke imports surged to 4.11 MT in 2014 from 2.78 MT a year ago.
During the first nine months of current fiscal, imports of coal stood at 167.60 MT, up 20.89 per cent from 138.64 MT imported during the corresponding period of the last fiscal, Oberoi said.
“Imports of steam coal during the nine months of 2014-15 stood at 131.73 MT, up 24.87 per cent from 105.49 MT recorded in the same period of 2013-14 while coking coal imports stood at 28.47 MT, up marginally from 27.21 mt during the period under review,” he added.
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