Enhanced domestic coal production to replace imports: Economic Survey

New Delhi: India's coal sector is likely to grow at 6-7 per cent per year to reach a production level of 1.5 billion tonne by 2030 and this rise in output is expected to replace imports and increase exports, the Economic Survey said on Tuesday.

There has also been constant efforts to improve system capacity utilisation from about 80 per cent to above 90 per cent.

Various measures have been initiated towards achieving self-reliance in coal production.

These include FDI under the automatic route, auctioning of coal blocks for commercial production, expansion of existing mines and opening of new mines, greater use of mass production technology in mining, mechanisation of loading and development of evacuation infrastructure, among others, the survey said.

Coal production in FY23 is likely to increase to 911 million tonne, about 17 per cent higher compared to the previous year. In April-December FY23, coal production rose 14 per cent year-on-year and was 21 per cent higher than the pre-pandemic FY20.

Further, the coal stock at power plants improved to 12 days as of December 30, 2022 compared to 10 days on June 30, 2022 and 8 days a year ago, it said.

At the beginning of the current fiscal year, coal availability became a challenge for the country's thermal-based power generation plants because of a resurgence in economic activity and intense heat waves in March-May, increasing the demand for power in the country.

Besides, in the wake of rising international coal prices, the power sector curtailed coal import drastically from 69 million tonne (MT) in FY20 to 45 MT in FY21 and further to 27 MT in FY22. As domestic coal production could not keep pace with its rising demand from power-generating plants, its availability got limited.

The government undertook several steps on a priority basis through April and May last year to address the supply constraints of coal.