Coal resources available to Coal India Ltd (CIL) has seen a boost of over 8.3 billion tonnes (bt) following allocation of 16 blocks by the Centre. The Maharatna PSU’s capacity now stands at 172 bt; or around 54 per cent of the country’s entire coal resource.
According to a statement by Coal India, the current coal resources under its fold will enable the company “to meet expanding coal demand to a considerable extent”.
Pointing out that Coal India alone “may not be able to meet the burgeoning demand”, the company says “if commercial miners step in to fill this gap by increasing domestic coal production it would be a welcome step.”
Coal imports stood at 235 million tonnes (mt) during 2018-19.
“Notwithstanding the entry of private miners in commercial coal mining, CIL is confident of staying ahead of the competition” said an official of the company.
