Coal India’s 1 billion t target scrapped

The Indian government appears to have scrapped Coal India’s target to produce 1 billion t of coal by 2020 as demand has failed to keep up with supply.

According to the Economic Times, an Indian newspaper, the state-owned mining company has been asked to keep its production in line with demand, as well as looking at ways to boost its coal sales. India currently has coal stockpiles of over 70 million t, including 28.31 million t at power plants.

“Coal India has now been asked to produce as much as the market can consume,” a coal sector official told the Economic Times. “It has also been asked to devise ways so that more coal is sold, including import substitution, as well as devise new types of e-auction that can lead to more coal sales.”

Coal India has been working to boost its production of coal following severe coal shortages in 2015. In the financial year to April 2016, the company produced 538.57 million t and had been set a target of 598.61 million t for the current financial year.

Edited by Jonathan Rowland.

Read the article online at: https://www.worldcoal.com/coal/05092016/coal-india-1-billion-t-target-scrapped-2016-2367/