CIL planning to reduce pithead stock by 25 MT by Dec

Company's pithead stock was 57 MT as on April 1, 2013

State-owned Coal India Ltd (CIL) is planning to bring down its pithead stock by 25 million tonne (MT) by the end of this year, a move aimed at easing the fuel supply situation in the country.

"Coal India is planning to reduce its pithead stocks by 25 MT by December 31, 2013," a source said.

CIL's pithead stock, coal which has been mined but not yet lifted for supplies, was 57 MT as on April 1, 2013, the source added. The latest pithead stock position has not been made available by the company yet.

"Railways needs to ensure supply of adequate number of rakes for evacuating coal from stocks," the source said.

For faster evacuation of coal from the pitheads, CIL had earlier introduced a one-time offer which allowed power utilities to lift the fuel directly from mines.

"A one-time offer is being made to all power utilities drawing coal to lift the coal which is held in the stocks on 'as is where is' basis with the stipulation that the power stations will make their own evacuation arrangement," CIL had said earlier.

The CIL scheme not only aimed at making available more coal to power utilities but will also liquidate stocks at mine heads.

"This will serve the objective of...Liquidation from the stocks wherever the power utilities come forward to lift by either road-cum-rail arrangements," CIL had said.

The coal major accounts for 80% of the total domestic output.

The Coal Ministry had earlier said that the gap between demand and supply of coal, which touched 135 million tonnes last fiscal, may reach 140 million tonnes in 2013-14.