New Delhi: Coal production in India is expected to increase to 1,533 million tonnes by 2030. Union Minister of Coal and Mines, G. Kishan Reddy said this in the Rajya Sabha. The Coal Ministry has set a target of producing up to 140 million tonnes of raw coking coal by 2030.
Meanwhile, India’s imports of high-quality coal declined by 3.1 per cent in the first seven months (April-October) of FY 2024-25. The coal imports declined to 149.39 million tonnes (MT), compared to 154.17 MT during the same period in the previous year. The Non-Regulated Sector (excluding the power sector) saw a more substantial decline, with imports dropping by 8.8 per cent year-on-year.
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Despite a growth of 3.87 per cent in coal-based power generation from April 2024 to October 2024 compared to the same period last year, coal imports for blending by thermal power plants saw a sharp decrease of 19.5 per cent. The increase in coal imports for the power sector, particularly from imported coal-based power plants (designed to use only imported coal), was notable, rising by 38.4 per cent to 30.04 MT, up from 21.71 MT in the previous year.
On the production side, coal output saw a positive growth of 6.04 per cent, rising to 537.57 MT in the April-October 2024 period, up from 506.93 MT in the same period of FY 2023-24.
India has the fifth-largest coal reserves globally. However, the country faces a significant gap in meeting its coal demand for coking coal required for steel production and high-grade thermal coal for firing power plants.
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