Coal import bill down Rs 1 trillion in four years

Due to a steady domestic production and improved quality control, India saved over Rs 1 trillion in coal import bill over the last four years. While power generation from coalfired stations grew at nearly 5 per cent, the shipments reduced from 91.29 million tonne (MT) in 2014-2015 to 56.41 MT in 2017-2018. Besides, the imports by the power sector rose by nearly 10 per cent annually between 2010-11 and 2014-15, updates the internal assessment paper of the coal ministry. The analysis, undertaken after several power stations recently ran low on coal stocks, assumes a Compounded Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) of 22.6 per cent on the basis of average import growth rate between 2009-10 and 2014-15 to project a requirement of 380 MT shipments in 2017-18, valued at Rs 2.52 trillion. Against this projection, actual imports stood at 208 MT, valued at Rs 1.14 trillion, reflecting a huge saving of forex outgo.