India has total coal stocks of 80 million tonnes (MT) at its power plants and coal mines put together at the end of February, thanks to the ongoing slump in the demand for power from distribution utilities and the low capacity utilisation of thermal power stations.
India is currently facing no difficulty in meeting its coal demand, said Piyush Goyal, Minister for Power, Coal, Renewable Energy and Mines in a written reply in Parliament. “The coal stock with thermal power plants as on 28 February was 26.15 MT (equivalent to 17 days’ requirement). Further, the vendible stock with Coal India Ltd (CIL) was 54.85 MT,” a coal ministry’s statement said quoting Goyal.
The minister also added that the government has taken steps to increase the domestic production including efforts to expedite environment and forest clearances, pursuing with states for assistance in land acquisition and coordinated effort with the Railways for movement of coal.
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