2022 Review Of Indian Ministry Of Coal: Insights And Road Ahead

The Indian Ministry of Coal has reported significant achievements in 2022, including record coal production of 780 million tons and the successful auctioning of 64 coal mines. The ministry has also signed memorandums of understanding with organizations such as BHEL, IOCL, and GAIL (India) for coal gasification projects and held Investors’ Conclaves in various parts of the country. Under Asset Monetization, the Ministry achieved Rs.40,104.64 crore, way above the NITI Aayog’s target of Rs. 3394 crore during 2021-22. In addition, the ministry has implemented innovative policy reforms and achieved notable success in areas such as land acquisition, adoption of new technology, and focus on sustainable development and just transition. The ministry’s efforts have also resulted in increased coal supply to the power sector and a growth in coal production and dispatch. The ministry has set a goal of increasing domestic raw coking coal production to 140 million tons by 2030 through measures including the expansion of existing mines and the identification of new mines. The ministry has also offered eight discontinued coking coal mines to the private sector on a revenue-sharing model

Coal Production and dispatch

In the year 2022 (up to November 22), all India Coal production (CIL, SCCL & Captive mines) is 779.108 MT (Provisional) in comparison to 716.083 MT in the year 2020-2021 and Coal off-take is 781.973 MT (Provisional). Further, in the current financial year up to November 22, the country has produced about 524.2 MT of coal as compared to about 448.1 MT during the same period of last year with a growth of about 17%. Coal dispatch to the Power Sector is 662.562 MT (Provisional). The year 2022 (up to November 22), E-Auction by CIL and SCCL is 56.45 MT.

Up until November 22, 2022–2023, the country’s supply/dispatch of coal increased by around 7.33% to 558.24 MT (provisional) from 521.08 MT during the same period the previous year. CIL & SCCL have sent 414.221 MT (up to November 22) (Provisional) compared to 375.147 MT during the same period previous year, an increase of approximately 10.42%, to fulfill the increased demand of the power industry for the years 2022–2023.

Coking coal Scenario

The Ministry of Coal in India has implemented measures as part of the ‘Atmanirbhar Bharat’ initiative to increase domestic raw coking coal production. Coal India Limited (CIL) has plans to increase production from existing mines to 26 million tonnes (MT) and has identified nine new mines with a Peak Rate Capacity (PRC) of approximately 22 MT by 2025. CIL has also offered eight discontinued coking coal mines, out of a total of 30, to the private sector on a revenue sharing model with a PRC of 2 MT. In addition, the Ministry has identified four coking coal blocks, and the Central Mine Planning and Design Institute (CMPDI) is expected to finalize the Geological Reports (GR) for 4 to 6 new coking coal blocks in the next two months, which may be offered in subsequent rounds of auction to further increase domestic raw coking coal supply. The goal is to reach a domestic raw coking coal production of 140 MT by 2030

It appears that the current domestic raw coking coal washing capacity in India is approximately 23 million tonnes per year (MTPA), including 9.26 MTPA from the private sector. The Coal India Limited (CIL) is planning to set up and operationalize nine more new washeries with a capacity of 30 MTPA. With the addition of these new washeries, it is estimated that CIL will be able to supply around 15 MT of washed coking coal to the steel sector, reducing the need for imports. During the 2022 fiscal year, CIL supplied 1.7 MT of washed coking coal to the steel sector and has set a target of 3.45 MT for the 2023 fiscal year.

As commented by the coal ministry, the Status of 9 Coking Coal Washeries-

1. Two Coking Coal washeries constructed and operational
2. Three under construction (3 Coking + 1 Non-coking)
3. One has received a Letter of Intent/Work Order
4. Three have been tendered and bids opened with price bids under evaluation
5. Two Washeries are to be tendered
6. 1 Non-coking Coal Washery is under construction

The reopening of discontinued mines using a revenue-sharing model

There are numerous abandoned mines in India that were previously used to extract coal but were closed due to safety concerns and unprofitable operations. These mines are considered a national loss because large amounts of coal reserves cannot be extracted. In order to bring these abandoned mines back into operation, the Ministry of Coal has planned to offer them to the private sector on a revenue-sharing model. The idea is that private companies will bring efficiency and state-of-the-art technology to the mining operations, reducing overhead expenses. As part of this initiative, Coal India Limited (CIL) has offered 20 mines in Tranche-I and 10 mines in Tranche-II in an effort to optimize the use of coal resources in the national interest

Road Ahead

The future agenda of the government is to make progress in the coal gasification project, the coal to Hydrogen mission, follow the technology roadmap which the government has already prepared, and Adoption of New Technology

Also Read:- Improving Efficiency and Sustainability of Coal Transportation in India