Indian state-owned coal group Coal India Ltd (CIL) produced 602 Mt of coal in the fiscal year 2019-2020 (April 2019-March 2020), i.e. around 1% less than in the fiscal year 2018-2019 (607 Mt). The group intended to produce 660 Mt of coal in 2019-2020 (corresponding to 82% of the total domestic coal production) and 750 Mt of coal in 2020-2021 but missed its 2019-2020 objective. Coal India’s stock reaches 75 Mt, while India’s coal-fired power plants have 45 Mt of coals stocks, enough to produce for 28 days.
According to the Central Electricity Authority (CEA), coal-fired power generation in India declined by around 2.5% in 2019, posting the first decrease in a decade. This decrease is explained by a broader economic slowdown reducing electricity demand and a higher competition from renewable power generation and from nuclear to a lesser extent. Meanwhile, Indian imports of thermal coal, which is mainly used for power generation, increased by nearly 13% in 2019, whereas imports of coking coal, which is used in steel production, dropped marginally.