Coal news and updates

CIL may increase prices by 15-20% to control input costs

Coal IndiaBSE 2.12 % may consider increasing prices by 15-20 per cent at a board meeting on Tuesday to take into account rising input costs and reduced income from curtailed e-auction volumes.

"Although the formal agenda for Tuesday's board meeting does not contain price rise, it may be placed at the last moment as part of the agenda that is laid on the table when the meeting starts," a senior company director told ET.

The board, which is scheduled to consider the first-quarter results, had previously considered a price increase of 10-15 per cent for certain categories of coal during a meeting in March and decided to keep it in abeyance until the completion of the Lok Sabha elections.

Coal India faces higher input costs such as freight charges and lower realisations from e-auctions amid output that has missed targets. E-auctions, or spot sales, help the company improve its margins as the bulk of its sales are to power companies through long-term agreements.

The government has asked state-owned Coal India to take steps to increase supplies to power generation companies. CIL would be able to make more coal available for electricity utilities by diverting part of the portion earmarked for e-auctions and escalating production from its mines.

Source: The Economic Times