- 28 Mar 2023
- ICICIdirect Research
SEVENTH ROUND OF COAL MINE AUCTIONS TO START FROM MARCH 29, 2023
News: On March 29, 2023 , the Ministry of Coal will launch the seventh round of auction of coal mines for commercial sale and will sign agreements for 28 mines awarded under the sixth round. Of the 106 mines that will be offered in the seventh round, 61 have been partially explored and 45 mines fully explored. These comprise 95 non coking coal mine, one coking coal mine and 10 lignite mines. As for the sixth round, which was concluded in the first half of March, the cumulative peak rated capacity of 28 coal mines awarded is 74 million tonnes per annum. The 28 mines are expected to generate annual revenue of Rs 14497 crore calculated at their peak rated capacity.
Views: Commercial coal mining has been given a thrust to meet India’s growing power demand with a view to limit imports. Despite having the fourth largest coal reserves in the world, India is the second largest importer of coal. A fifth of the annual coal requirement is being met through imports. India launched commercial coal mining via auctions in 2020. Coal gasification, coal liquefaction and extraction of coal bed methane have also been allowed and encouraged to the allottees under commercial coal mining.
Impact: Neutral