The Ministry of State for Power, Coal, New & Renewable Energy and Mines of India has announced that state-owned coal company Coal India Ltd (CIL) has set a target to replace around 15 Mt of imported coal with domestic production within six months. Indian coal-fired power plants have been designed to burn imported coal but domestic supply is improving and India currently has a coal surplus.
Meanwhile, the Ministry has invited applications from power companies for allotment of seven coal blocks, with cumulated reserves of 4.85 Gt. The seven coal mines include the Deocha-Pachami mine in West Bengal (coal reserves of 2,102 Mt), the Ghogarpalli mine in Odisha (1,163 Mt), the Jadunathpur mine in Odisha (525 Mt), the Pokharia Paharpur mine in Jharkhand (584 Mt), the Behraband North Extension block in Madhya Pradesh (175 Mt) and the North Kathara Ph-I and Ph-II UG mine in Jharkhand (305 Mt).
The Deocha-Pachami mine was initially expected to be jointly allocated to the entities of six states of West Bengal, Karnataka, Bihar, Uttar Pradesh, Punjab and and Tamil Nadu, but the Ministry reviewed the process after a request submitted by West Bengal.