Coal news and updates

Essar Power floats enquiry to procure 0.3 mt imported coal

September 13: Essar Power Ltd has floated an enquiry to procure around 300,000 tons of imported steam coal for its 1,200 MW Salaya Power Plant in Gujarat, a trade source said.

"Enquiry has been placed recently for coal with specification ranging from 4,600 Kcal/kg GAR to 6,000 Kcal/kg NAR with moisture content of 8% to 29% for delivery in October-November," the source said.

"The company has asked the traders and miners to submit their offers till September 13, but it will continue to receive offers till September 16. Actually, the company will keep on evaluating offers.

"It appears that the company has not decided whether to buy Indonesian or South African coal. The final decision will all depend on the quality of coal and pricing," the source said.

Essar Power has imported around 4.5 million tons of coal since the plant came to operation around a year back. The imports were partly through traders on CFR basis and partly through miners on FOB basis.

"We will import 4.5 to 5.0 mt of coal in the current financial year. So far, we have only imported Indonesian coal," a source in Essar Power said.