Coal news and updates

 

The coal ministry has asked coal block allocates to comment on the methodology for fixing the floor price of coal blocks allocated to companies.

 

The companies and states that have been awarded coal blocks under the recent auction have been asked to submit their comments by September 20.

 

Crisil was asked to find the methodology of fixing reserve prices of coal blocks. However, 14 coal blocks were recently allocated to central and state public sector undertaking. The blocks went to NTPC, Neyveli Lignite, and five state sector companies.

 

Although the blocks have already been allotted the ministry is yet to finalize the pirice for each of these blocks. In the agreement signed with the ministry and the companies that were allotted the block, it has been mentioned that they will pay to pay the reserve price within a stipulated time after it is announced.

 

Nevertheless, the allocation of the blocks, having a geological reserve of 8,311 million tonnes (mt), is expected to lead to an investment of more than Rs.1.60 lakh crore in the power sector. Of the four coal blocks allocated to NTPC, two are in Chhattisgarh and the remaining in Odisha. The blocks have reserves of 1,995 mt of coal.

 

Other PSUs which have been allocated mines include Neyveli Uttar Pradesh Power Ltd., Odisha Thermal Power Corp, Jammu & Kashmir State Power Dev Corp, Chhattisgarh State Power Gen Co Ltd, Andhra Pradesh Generation Co, Maharashtra State Power Generation Co, Rajasthan Vidyut Utpadan Nigam and Punjab State Power Corp Ltd. 

 

Source: ET