Rail projects to transport coal

The Union Coal Ministry will uplift railway infrastructure in Talcher and Ib Valley for coal transportation in order to double production of Mahanadi Coalfields Limited (MCL) in the next five years. Union Coal Secretary Anil Swarup told the media that there was a preliminary discussion to form two special purpose vehicles (SPVs) for evacuation of coal from Talcher and Ib Valley (Jharsuguda) to different industries. In both the SPVs, MCL will have 64 per cent stake followed by the railways´ 26 per cent and state government´s 10 per cent, official sources said. At present, MCL which has 22 coal mines, including six underground ones, produces 125 million tonne (MT) coal a year.