CIL will achieve 1 bn tonne coal production target by FY26: Pralhad Joshi

CIL will achieve 1 billion tonne coal production target by 2025-26 as against the earlier timeline of 2023-24 in view of the COVID-19 pandemic, Union Minister Pralhad Joshi said on Wednesday.

Coal India Ltd (CIL) accounts for over 80 per cent of the domestic coal output.

"Due to COVID our earlier target has been postponed. We will fulfil our dream of one billion tonne and we will be aatmanirbhar in thermal coal...By 2025-26, Coal India will produce one billion tonne," Joshi said on the sidelines of a function here.

CIL was earlier eying 1 billion tonne coal production by 2023-24.

Replying to a question, he said as far as thermal power plants are concerned, there is an average coal stock of 24 million tonne and day-to-day stock of the fossil fuel is adding.

"Our plan is to keep at least 40 million tonne of coal as far as March 31 is concerned," he said.

Coal output by CIL in current financial year is expected to be 700 MT and there would be additional output of 200 MT from other sources.

While addressing a function organised by CIL here to sign memorandums of understanding (MoUs) with five PSUs for coal gasification projects, the minister said in the next few months India will become self reliant in thermal coal production.

There would be an investment of Rs 30,000 crore in all the five projects.

"We have kept the arrangement of PLI scheme. The size of PLI (production-linked incentive) would be around Rs 6,000 crore," the minister noted.

For setting up large-scale coal-to-chemical projects through surface coal gasification route, CIL signed three separate MoUs with BHEL, Indian Oil Corporation Ltd (IOCL) and GAIL (India) Ltd.

In addition, NLC India is signing MoU with BHEL.

The proposed surface coal gasification projects are planned to be set up in West Bengal, Odisha, Chhattisgarh, Maharashtra and Tamil Nadu.