SECL aims at 262 MT coal production by 2025-26 with new rail

South Eastern Coalfields Limited (SECL) is expected to produce 262 million tonnes (MT) by 2025 -26, contributing 26 per cent to the one billion tonne coal production target of Coal India, officials said on Thursday.

The subsidiary of the coal behemoth aims at playing a lead role to meet the production goal with its new rail corridor being built at a cost of Rs 3,055 crore, the officials said.

"The 136 km East Rail Corridor from Kharsia-Korichapar -Dharamjaygarh-Korba will play a key role to meet the production goal, Coal India officials said.

The miner had also decided to procure rakes of its own to expedite supplies of the fuel through the mode of railways.

In 2018-19, SECL had produced 153 million tonne of coal and the new railway tracks will help coal evacuation from greenfield and existing mines, the miner said.

In the first phase, the 44-km of new railway line in Chhattisgarh between Kharsia and Korichapar has been made operational from October 12.

"Already, two rakes a day are being loaded but this will be increased, and coal is now supplied to power stations of Maharashtra and Gujarat," an official said.

East Rail Corridor is developed by the Chhattisgarh East Railway Limited (CERL), a Special Purpose Vehicle (SPV) between SECL, Chhattisgarh government and IRCON International at a cost of Rs 3,055 crore for laying down a 136 km rail line from Kharsia-Korichapar-Dharamjaygarh-Korba.

While SECL holds a stake of 64 per cent in this tri- partite SPV, Chhattisgarh government and IRCON have 10 per cent and 26 per cent holding respectively.

The next phase of the 30 km railway line between Korichapar and Dharamjaygarh is likely to come up by middle of 2020 and from Dharamjaygarh to Korba, a stretch of 62 kms, is expected to be linked by end by 2022.