Coal India´s supply to power sector up 7% in April-Jan

CIL´s supply of coal to the power sector rose by 6.7 to 336 mt in the first 10 months of the ongoing fiscal with the government aiming to supply 24*7 electricity. CIL, accounting for over 80 per cent of domestic coal production, had dispatched 314.84 mt of coal April-January previous fiscal, official data showed. The supply by Singareni Collieries Company (SCCL) in April-Jan rose 25.4 per cent to 39.63 mt. The dispatch by CIL in January also rose to 36.84 mt over 34.63 mt in 2015. The rise in coal dispatch is due to rise in output by CIL and SCCL, improvement in evacuation and opening new mines, among other factors. Strong emphasis on increasing coal production has resulted in a record 9.8 per cent growth in CIL´s production and highest ever output. This has also led to reduced imports, President Pranab Mukherjee said. The government is eyeing to achieve 1.5 bln tonne of production by 2020.