With rainfall receding across its mining regions, coal behemoth Coal India’s daily coal production witnessed a sharp 35 per cent increase, translating into higher dispatches, with the power sector witnessing a clear pick-up in coal supplies.
Coal India’s average daily coal production rose to around 1.83 million tonnes (mt) on September 6 from around 1.36 million tonnes during the first three rain-affected days this month.
The improvement came as mining conditions steadily recovered and affected transportation routes and working areas were restored. The rise in production was led by CIL’s subsidiaries. During the same period, average daily production increased around 61 per cent from 0.18 mt to 0.29 mt at Northern Coalfields Ltd (NCL), up by 33 per cent from 0.15 mt to 0.20 mt at South Eastern Coalfields Ltd (SECL), according to a Coal Ministry release on Monday.
“The improvement in production is translating into higher dispatches, with the power sector witnessing a clear pick-up in coal supplies. The average daily dispatch to the power sector increased by 24 per cent from around 1.37 mt during the first three days of September to 1.7 mt as on September 6, the release said, adding during the same period, power-sector dispatch increased by 56 per cent from 0.18 mt to 0.28 mt at NCL, up 23 per cent from 0.30 mt to 0.37 mt at SECL.
The improvement in production is being backed by a substantial increase in overburden removal (OBR), an important indicator of coal exposure and future production readiness. Average daily OBR doubled from 2.5 million cubic metres during the first three days of September to 5.1 MCM on September 6. OBR increased fourfold at NCL, over three times at SECL during the same period.
“Resources have been reappropriated and remobilised to full deployment strength to accelerate overburden removal and expose additional coal. The lower-horizon coal seams are steadily being brought back into operation through continuous dewatering. Mines that had been operating under geotechnical constraints during the monsoon are now opening up as the mine landscape widens with the return of dry spells,” it said.
The Ministry said one significant improvement is the availability of dry working benches and dry raw coal. With reduced moisture and stickiness, the coal acquires better free-flowing characteristics, facilitating smoother handling and conveyance.
Additional steps
CIL is taking additional measures to strengthen supplies to power plants, particularly critical plants drawing coal through Washery and RCR mode. Coal is being offered beyond the Monthly scheduled Quantity (MSQ) to interested Central and State Gencos and IPPs for road-mode lifting. Lifting of coal against delivery orders issued to critical power plants in road mode is also being prioritised.
The improvement in coal movement is visible across several mining areas. Haul roads and coal transportation routes affected by heavy rainfall are being strengthened on a continuous basis across all mines of CIL. The impact of these measures became evident with the reduction in rainfall from September 3 onwards, the Coal Ministry said.
The Ministry also said that coal loading to the power sector has shown a consistent upward trend over the past four days, rising from 370 rakes on September 3 to 444 rakes on September 6, a net addition of 74 rakes per day, including a single-day improvement of 31 rakes on September 6 alone.
“This reflects the sustained efforts of CIL, its subsidiaries, SCCL and captive mine operators to ramp up coal supply to the power sector,” it said.
“The number of critical thermal plants (stock below 25 per cent of normative requirement) are being closely monitored, with corrective coal supply measures already in place to further ease the position at these plants. The Ministry of Coal and CIL remain committed to sustaining this improving trend in rake loading to the power sector and meeting the requirements,” it added.