Powermin seeks special treatment

Months after demanding a complete ban on e-auction sales of coal to meet shortages for long-term consumers in the power sector, the power ministry on Wednesday called for preferential treatment for the electricity sector during spot market sales of the fuel.

“E-auction should be resorted to only after the coal producers meet the requirement of the power sector,” power secretary P Uma Shankar said. He also added that during discussions on the matter, coal ministry had assured committed supply for power projects through e-auction but on the condition the fuel would have to be lifted from the pithead of Coal India mines.

Coal India alone contributes over 80 per cent of domestic coal production. Over 10 per cent of its annual production of 431 million tonnes (mt) is sold through e-auction at prices over 70 per cent higher than the notified prices.

While coal supply has grown by 4 per cent in the past five years, demand for the fuel rose 7.5 per cent during the same period. Coal shortage in India currently stands at around 80 mt against annual demand of over 600 mt. The shortage is set to jump to over 200 mt by the end of the 12th Plan period in 2017. The shortage has led to stranded power capacity of around 40,000 Mw.

Meanwhile, coal minister Sri Prakash Jaiswal on Wednesday said that his ministry would ensure adequate supply of fuel for the power plants of India’s largest electricity generator National Thermal Power Corporation (NTPC) Limited. His statement came minutes before his meeting on Wednesday with power minister Sushilkumar Shinde over shortages.

NTPC plants are running at an all-time low fuel supply as heavy rains in the eastern and central parts of the country coupled with agitation over the Telangana issue in Andhra Pradesh disrupted production and offtake of coal from Coal India’s mines.

The company’s power stations at Dadri in the National Capital Region, Singrauli and Unchahar in the northern region, Vindhyachal in Madhya Pradesh, Farakka and Kahalgaon in the eastern region and Ramagundam and Simhadari in the south have been affected due to shortage of coal.

NTPC plants had a 13-day coal stock before the onset of monsoon. This has currently come down to as low as four days’ stock.