After two years of fall, India's coal imports grow 8.1% in FY18

Total import was valued at $22 billion in 2017-18, around 4.9 per cent of all import in value terms

After two years of falling, the country’s coal import grew 8.1 per cent in 2017-18. There was sustained demand for coking coal from the steel sector and for steam or thermal grade coal from the power and cement sectors.

Data from the Centre for Monitoring Indian Economy (CMIE) shows the import at 213 million tonnes in FY18, up from 195 mt in FY17. After a peak of 215 mt in 2014-15, these had slid to 207 mt in FY16 and to 195 mt in FY17. And, although the central government wanted more use of domestically extracted coal, supplies were let