Coal production rises 28% in Apr on strong demand from power sector

India’s coal output soared by 28 per cent to 66.1 million tonnes (mt) in April amid high demand from thermal power plants as several parts of the country grappled with power shortage.

The overall coal production was at 51.6 mt in April 2021. “During the month of April, 2022 India's total coal production stood at 66.1 mt," the coal ministry said in a statement.

While Coal India (CIL) and its subsidiaries produced 53.4 mt of coal, production by Singareni Colleries Company (SCCL) stood at 5.3 mt and by captive mines at 7.3 mt during the last month.

According to the provisional data of the Ministry of Coal, while the total offtake of the coal sector was 70.8 mt during the month, the power sector offtake touched 61.7 mt in April. At the same time, coal supplies to the power sector from Coal India alone stood at 49.7 mt. Coal supplies to the power sector by CIL were 15.6 per cent higher in the last month on yearly basis in the wake of high demand of the dry fuel from electricity generating plants.