Coal dispatch by CIL to power sector dips 13%

In view of weak power demand, the dispatch of coal by Coal India (CIL) to the power sector declined by 12.7 per cent to 26.4 million tonnes (MT) in August this year.
CIL, which accounts for over 80 per cent of domestic coal production, dispatched 30.25 MT of coal in the same month of the last financial year (FY), according to government data. The company´s supply to the power sector in the first five months of the current fiscal also dropped by 2 per cent to 157 MT, against 160 MT in the corresponding period of the previous FY. Coal dispatch by Singareni Collieries Company (SCCL), declined by 9.4 per cent to 3.6 MT in August 2016. Expressing concern over the lack of demand, Coal Secretary Anil Swarup has also wondered as to the viability of the 1 billion tonne target for coal by 2020.