Telangana keen to buy Centre stake in Singareni

CM, K Chandrasekhar Rao, directed the officials to initiate steps in this regard

The Telangana government is exploring the possibilities of purchasing the entire shareholding of the Union government in Singareni Collieries Company Limited (SCCL) to make it totally a state-owned company. Chief minister, K Chandrasekhara Rao, directed officials to initiate steps in this regard, according to an official press release.

At present, the state government holds 51 per cent share in the coal mining company and the remaining 49 per cent of the stake is held by the Centre.

While reviewing the activities of SCCL on Monday, Rao is stated to have pointed out that under the current disinvestment policy of the Centre, “the possibilities of owning the company are very bright.”

Besides those located in Telangana, SCCL currently supplies coal to various thermal power plants based in Andhra Pradesh. It operates 15 open cast and 34 underground mines in four districts of Telangana.

During the meeting, the press release stated, SCCL officials brought to the notice of the chief minister that about Rs 1,200 crore of royalty was being paid to the Union government every year, while the royalty paid to the state government ranged from Rs 1,500 crore to Rs 1,600 crore.The total turnover of the company is about Rs 12,300 crore.

The chief minister is also stated to have directed SCCL officials to protect the assets of the company outside Telangana like the lands in Kondapally of Krishna district, Visakhapatnam and Vijayawada. He said the details of assets had to be worked out and the lands were to be fenced.

The chief minister suggested working out strategies to meet the growing demands of coal and said SCCL should also explore the possibilities of mining outside the state and country. He said a 10-member delegation headed by company’s chairman and managing director, Suthirtha Bhattacharya, should go to countries like Australia, South Africa, Mozambique and Indonesia to explore coal-rich areas and submit a report. He also wanted SCCL to have a corporate look and the new face of the company should be unique.