News Analysis India

Tag: Coal Crisis

  • Power engineers demand high-level enquiry on coal crisis, withdrawal of Electricity (Amendment) Bill 

    By Express News Service

    NEW DELHI: Amid the ongoing power crisis due to coal shortage in the country, the power engineers on Saturday demanded a high level enquiry on the present coal crisis. All India Power Engineers Federation (AIPEF) also urged the government to withdraw Electricity (Amendment) Bill 2021 and all sorts of privatization in the Power Sector.  “The power ministry, in overcoming the crisis on the one hand imposing on the state governments and generating companies to import coal and on the other hand providing relief to private power plants that have been designed and sanctioned to run on imported coal,” said Shailendra Dubey, chairman of AIPEF. “An independent inquiry should be  constituted into the coal crisis that has enveloped the country during the summer of 2022 and is likely to extend into the monsoon,” he added further.

    The federation blamed the central government for the coal crisis. They highlighted various reasons including the withdrawal of reserves of Coal India Ltd to the tune of ₨. 35,000 crores, directives to Coal India Ltd to invest in the fertilizer industry thereby neglecting its primary function for meeting coal demands, non-appointment or delayed appointment of key executives such as CMD CIL for several years.

    “The government should take the responsibility and centrally import the coal and ensure that the imported coal is properly blended with domestic coal through Coal India. The price of the blended coal should be based on the same principles and basis as the pricing of the Indian coal. The Govt of India should bear the extra cost of imported coal,” suggested the federation.

    They have also termed Electricity (Amendment) Bill 2021 as anti-people and anti-employee. 

  • Power crisis: Indian Railways deploys 86 per cent of its open wagons for coal transportation

    By PTI

    NEW DELHI: To counter the electricity crisis in the country, the Railways has deployed 86 per cent of its open wagons to transport coal to various power plants in the country, sources said on Wednesday.

    Out of the 1,31,403 BOXN or open wagons in its fleet, the Railways is using 1,13,880 for coal transportation, as part of a plan formulated by the national transporter in consultation with the ministries of coal and power, they said.

    Data shows the Railways has around 3,82,562 wagons, out of which 1,31,403 are open wagons and 3,636 of whom are in need of repair as of May 2.

    Daily, the Railways is loading an average of around 28,470 wagons with coal to meet the demand from power plants.

    A coal train usually gets up to 84 wagons.

    The Railways has also used an innovative method of using long-haul trains — running three to five trains together — at 122 locations in states like Jharkhand, Odisha, Chhattisgarh and Madhya Pradesh to expedite transportation.

    In marathon meetings with top officials of the three ministries, around 18 key points have been identified in the transportation of coal.

    This includes the detention of rakes during coal loading and unloading which is taking more than 10 days in some cases, sources said.

    The situation, sources say is such that the Railways is even put into action around 40-50 damaged wagons in operation to move coal.

    Officials said to expedite the movement of coal rakes, the Railways has also increased the operating duration of rakes by 2,500 km.

    This means that the rakes which were earlier treated for wear and tear after every 7,500 km are now sent to the garage after 10,000 km, giving them more running time.

    The trains which have a loading capacity of around 71 MT are now carrying at least a tonne of extra load.

    Sources indicate that this focus on coal is affecting the transportation of steel and aluminium.

    The steel industry is also facing a shortage of BOXN rakes for the movement of imported coking coal from ports like Paradip and Dharma to steel plants, they said.

    In 2021-22, the Railways transported 653 million tonnes (MT) of coal, around 20.4 per cent higher than in 2020-21.

    Around 46 per cent of the railways’ total freight cargo in 2021-22 comprised coal.

    Of the 653 MT of coal transported by the railways, around 83 per cent, or around 540.4 MT, was to thermal power plants.

    The remaining was to foundries of different manufacturing units.

    According to railway ministry data, nearly 95 per cent of coal transported by the railways comes from Coal India’s reserves while the remaining is imported.

    “With our focus on ensuring that we transport coal to power plants to ensure that there are no blackouts in the country, loading of other commodities are bound to suffer.

    “This has affected passenger trains as well. It is a matter of priority and a calculated decision has been taken,” said an official in the ministry.

  • Government ‘totally unprepared’ to tackle coal-rail-power crisis: Chidambaram 

    He also said the ministries of coal, railway and power are desperately inventing excuses to hide their “monumental incompetence”.

  • Closure of some mines, inundation due to monsoon led to coal crisis: Pralhad Joshi 

    By PTI

    CHATRA (Jharkhand): Coal Minister Pralhad Joshi on Thursday said the closure of some mines, and inundation of a few others due to monsoon led to the crisis but there is no need to panic as the situation is improving.

    Visiting the Ashoka mine of the Central Coalfields Ltd (CCL) at Piparwar in Chatra district of Jharkhand, Joshi said the power plants in the country will continue to receive the required amount of coal.

    “We are witnessing an improvement now,” he said, asked about the current situation.

    The minister held discussions with officials of CCL and Eastern Coalfields Ltd (ECL) on the prevailing situation.

    “We can produce two million tonnes of coal per day,” he said, asserting the need for producing more coal.

    Closure of some coal mines and inundation of a few others due to monsoon led to the hindrance in coal supply to power plants, Joshi told reporters.

    The minister also discussed the issue related to the availability of land for mining at the meeting.

    A solution will be found with the cooperation of all, including the district administration, he said.

  • There won’t be coal crisis for power generation: Union minister Pralhad Joshi

    By PTI

    BILASPUR: Amid the country’s power plants grappling with coal shortages, Union Coal Minister Pralhad Joshi on Wednesday assured that there will no crisis to meet the supply of coal for power generation.

    He was talking to reporters after arriving at the Bilaspur airport before heading to neighbouring Korba district where he is scheduled to take stock of Gevra, Dipka and Kusmunda mines of the South Eastern Coalfields Limited (SECL), a Coal India subsidiary, and chair a review meeting with officials.

    Asked if Congress was creating a hype claiming shortage of coal, the coal and mines minister said, “I don’t want to do politics over this. We have already been meeting the total requirement.”

    “Today, the requirement is 1.1 million tonnes of coal for power generation and we have already supplied two million tonnes. The stock is also rising because of it. I assure that there will be no problem in meeting the supply for power generation in the country,” he said.

    Joshi said he was going to visit the mines of SECL to take stock and hold discussions to expedite the production there.

    “As far as the requirement is concerned, the power ministry had put forth the demand for supply of 1.9 million tonnes (for power generation units) and after 20th (October), two million tonnes. Today only, we have supplied two million tonnes and rest of the things I will discuss after the review (of mines),” he added.

    On Tuesday, the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) reviewed the coal supply and power generation scenario, as the government looks at ways to defuse the energy crisis being faced by several states.

    The coal ministry has been asked to ramp up the supply of coal while the Railways has been asked to make available rakes to transport the fuel to power plants, sources earlier said.

    The shortage of coal — which makes up around 70 per cent of India’s electricity mix — has forced rotational power cuts in states from Rajasthan to Kerala.

    About two-thirds of the coal-fired power plants had stockpiles of a week or less, but the coal ministry earlier said, “any fear of disruption in the power supply is entirely misplaced”.

    States have been forced to buy power from exchanges at high rates to meet the demand.

  • Ministries work on coal crisis across states, PMO keeps watch

    By Express News Service

    NEW DELHI: Steps are being taken to ramp up the supply of coal to two million tonnes per day from the current overall dispatch of 1.95 MT for meeting the demand of power producers, Union Coal Minister Pralhad Joshi said on Tuesday.

    In the backdrop of shortage of supplies, the Prime Minister’s Office also reviewed the coal supply and power generation scenario. Power Secretary Alok Kumar and Coal Secretary AK Jain made a presentation on coal and power availability, sources said, adding that ways to increase transportation of coal were also discussed during the meeting.

    The shortage of coal — which makes up 70 per cent of India’s electricity mix — has forced rotational power cuts in various states. For example, Maharashtra is facing a shortage of 3,500 to 4,000 MW of electricity supply for which it blames the Coal India Ltd (CIL)    

    “We at the ministry and CIL are making full efforts to meet the coal demand… We supplied around 1.95 MT of coal (on Monday). Around 1.6 million tonnes from CIL and the remaining from Singareni Collieries Company Ltd. All put together, 1.95 MT we have supplied,” Joshi said. “I think that in the history of India… this is the highest-ever supply we have made and I am assuring that this supply will continue throughout.” 

    As part of the various measures,  CIL was asked to augment the coal supply to 1.55-1.6 million tonnes per day this week and to scale it up to 1.7 million tonnes daily after October 20. The Power Ministry, meanwhile, asked states to utilise unallocated power of the central generating stations to meet the requirements of their own consumers for the time being.

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  • Coal shortage problem will be stabilized in 1-2 weeks: Central Coalfields Limited MD

    By ANI

    RANCHI: Amid the reports of shortage of coal stock in the country, the Central Coalfields Limited (CCL) said that in the coming one or two weeks the problem will be stabilized.

    In an exclusive conversation with ANI, Chairman and Managing Director of CCL, PM Prasad said, “There is no such crisis. Definitely coal stock is on a low level because power generation is high this year. You can say there is much growth. For Coal India, we have supplied at least 53 million tonnes, more than last year, in the first half of the financial year.”

    He said that the Coal India stock will last for atleast 20 days.

    Asked about the current status of coal stock Prasad said, “The Coal India stock will last for atleast 20 days minimum. In the case of CCL, it is 1.95 million and of Bharat Coking Coal Limited (BCCL), it is 6.5 lakh tonnes. With this stock level and with the production is coming up since monsoon is over. I am confident that the stock remaining the same, whatever we will produce will dispatch to the power plant.”

    With respect to Jharkhand, he said that both CCL and Bharat Coking Coal Limited (BCCL) have more than 25 per cent in dispatch growth.

    “In the coming days, since the monsoon is over I am very much confident that it will be stabilized in the next one week. And post-Durga Puja, it will be further picking up. In the last 3-4 days power plants are getting coal. If the requirement is 1.6 million, almost 1.55 million is being met. I am very much confident that in the coming one or two weeks it will be stabilized,” he emphasised.

    He said that powerhouse coal stocks are being monitored at multiple levels.

    “We are continuously monitoring powerhouse stocks at 2-3 levels. One is at the Coal India level, one is at the Ministry of Coal level, further by inter-ministerial groups, Ministry of power and Railways. This is being done thrice weekly and at the company level, we are monitoring every day. We are having continuous discussions with the energy secretaries of some of the states, DVC chairman and linked power plants. We are in continuous touch,” added Prasad.

    Meanwhile, amid growing concerns of depleting coal stock in the country, Union Home Minister Amit Shah held a high-level meeting with Power Minister RK Singh, Coal Minister Prahlad Joshi along with top officials of both the ministries in the North Block on Monday.

    The meeting also saw the presence of top officials of National Thermal Power Corporation Limited (NTPC).

    The high-level meeting was convened a day after the Union Power Minister assured that the supply stock of coal to power plants has exceeded consumption, adding that it will help in improving the fuel stock position gradually.

    Coal Minister Pralhad Joshi has also denied allegations of power failure due to a shortage of coal.

    The Power Ministry asserted that the Inter-Ministerial sub-group has been monitoring the status of coal reserves twice a week.

    The Chief Ministers of Punjab, Chhattisgarh, Delhi and Andhra Pradesh have written to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, seeking to increase the supply of coal and gas to power plants in their respective states.

    Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Monday said many Chief Ministers have written to the Central government about the critical situation at power plants due to a coal shortage.

    “The situation is critical and many CMs have written about it to the Central government. We all are working together to improve the situation,” he said.

    Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar also flagged the issue of probable coal shortage.

    “It is true there is a problem. As per our requirement, either we get it from NTPC or from private companies. But the supply is affected now. There are some reasons due to which such a situation has arisen. It is not only in Bihar, but also everywhere,” Kumar told mediapersons on Monday.

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  • Fear of disruption in power supply entirely misplaced, says coal ministry

    By PTI

    NEW DELHI: The coal ministry on Sunday assured that sufficient dry-fuel is available in the country to meet the demand of electricity generating plants and stressed that any fear of disruption in power supply is “entirely misplaced”.

    The statement comes in the wake of reports that warned of power crisis looming large due to the coal shortage in the country.

    “The ministry of coal reassures that ample coal is available in the country to meet the demand of power plants. Any fear of disruption in power supply is entirely misplaced,” the ministry said in a release.

    Coal Minister Pralhad Joshi tweeted: “Reviewed coal production & supply situation in the country. Assuring everyone that there is absolutely no threat of disruption in power supply. There is sufficient coal stock of 43 million tonnes with @CoalIndiaHQ equivalent to 24 days coal demand.”

    The coal stock at power plants’ end is about 72 lakh tonnes, sufficient for four days requirement, and that the Coal India Ltd (CIL) end is more than 400 lakh tonnes, which is being supplied to power plants, the coal ministry said.

    The domestic coal-based power generation has grown by nearly 24 per cent this year (till September) based on a robust supply from the coal companies.

    The daily average coal requirement at the power plants is about 18.5 lakh tonnes of coal per day whereas the daily coal supply has been around 17.5 lakh tonnes per day.

    “Due to extended monsoons the despatches were constrained. The coal available at the power plants is a rolling stock which gets replenished by the supplies from the coal companies on a daily basis. Therefore, any fear of coal stocks depleting at the power plant end is erroneous,” it said.

    In fact this year, domestic coal supply has substituted imports by a substantial measure.

    “Despite heavy rains in the coal field areas, CIL has supplied more than 255 MT (million tonnes) coal to power sector in this year which is the highest ever H-1 supply from CIL to power sector,” it said.

    Out of the total coal supply from all sources, present coal supply from CIL to power sector is more than 14 lakh tonnes per day and with the receding rains, this supply has already increased to 15 lakh tonnes and is set to increase to more than 16 lakh tonnes per day by the end of this month.

    The supply from SCCL and captive coal blocks shall contribute to another 3 lakh plus tonnes of coal every day.

    Domestic coal supplies have supported power generation in a major way despite heavy monsoons, low coal imports and a steep hike in power demand due to economic recovery.

    It is expected that coal supplies are set to be a record high in the current financial year.

    Due to high international prices of coal, supply of power even under power purchase agreements (PPAs) by import-based power plants has reduced by almost 30 per cent while domestic-based power supply has gone up nearly 24 per cent in first half of this year.

    The imported coal-based power plants have generated about 25.6 BU against a programme of 45.7 BU.

  • Coal shortage fuels blackouts in many states including Andhra Pradesh

    By Express News Service

    Several north Indian states are staring at blackouts as an acute coal shortage is crippling power production. Severe shortage at thermal plants in Punjab forced utility PSPCL to cut down generation and impose load shedding at several places, while supplies are being cut for one hour daily in Rajasthan.

    Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal urged the Centre to intervene to address an impending energy crisis in the National Capital.

    The impact of the shortage was also felt in other parts of the country, including Gujarat, Tamil Nadu and Andhra Pradesh.

    Meanwhile, Union coal minister Pralhad Joshi said a steep rise in international prices and excessive rains were to be blamed for the shortage. However, he added that the situation would be ‘alright’ in three-four days.

    A coal ministry official said India had adequate stocks of coal, but transportation from mines to plants was hit due to rains.

    ​“There are about 40 million tonnes of coal stocks at the mines and another 7.5 million tonnes at power plants,” he said.