Coal supply to TTPS hit due to mine closure

The closure of Jagannath coal mine in Talcher coalfield has adversely affected coal supply to the nearby 460 Mw Talcher Thermal Power Station (TTPS) of NTPC.

The mine has been shut down by the mining authorities.

TTPS gets about eight to ten thousand tonnes of coal from Jagannath mines everyday. While 5000 to 6000 tonnes of coal is received through the conveyer system, the rest is dispatched from the mines by rail. However, the daily dispatch has now come down to one or two rakes of coal (3.5 thousand tonne per rake). The state mining authorities closed this open cast mine on Tuesday for want of environmental clearance.

Official sources said, the mine did not have the required ‘consent to operate’, granted by the Orissa State Pollution Control Board (OSPCB). The consent expired on 31 March 2010. “Since the coal mining unit didn’t have the consent to operate, we had to seal the mine”, said a mining official. Coal mine authorities have stated that efforts are on to get the consent from OSPCB. However, they admitted that coal supply to TTPS has been badly hit as the supply of 5000 to 6000 tonne through conveyor belt has completely stopped.