Coal news and updates

Mine allotment process for PSUs to start on Wednesday

Govt to invite applications for 43 coal blocks...

The government will on Wednesday start afresh the process for allotting coal mines to State and Central public sector undertakings (PSUs) and will now allot 43 blocks, instead of 36 announced earlier.

“Tomorrow, the Coal Ministry will come out with notification inviting applications for 43 coal blocks,” a Coal Ministry official said.

There is a lot of demand from PSUs for allotment of coal blocks.

Coal Secretary Anil Swarup further said that instead of 36 coal mines the government had decided that it would allot 45 coal blocks to the PSUs.

The Ministry has decided to allot 43 mines instead of 45 blocks as two mines have been held back as they are being examined by a technical committee.

The government has put on sale 19 coal blocks in the first lot. Till now nine coal blocks have been bagged by companies like Hindalco, Jaiprakash Associates, Durgapur Projects and B S Ispat.

The government has already started the process of auction of 21 coal blocks to be put on sale in the second lot.

Meanwhile, Jaiprakash Power Ventures bagged the Amelia (North) mine in Madhya Pradesh, quoting Rs.712 a tonne, the highest among 11 firms, including Adani Power, Balco and Essar Power.

Bids are under way on the fourth day of auction for another two coal blocks — Ardhagram in West Bengal and Chotia in Chhattisgarh to be given to firms in the non-power sector.

“Jaiprakash Power the highest bidder at (Rs) 712 (a tonne) for Amelia North,” Coal Secretary Anil Swarup tweeted.

The ten companies in the race for Amelia (North) mine apart from Jaiprakash Power Ventrues Ltd were — Adani Power, Bharat Aluminium Co (BALCO), Essar Power M P, GMR Chhattisgarh Energy, GVK Power Goindwal Sahib, Jindal Power, JSW Energy, KSK Mahanadi Power Company, RattanIndia Power and Reliance Geothermal Power Pvt. Ltd.

The mine has extractable reserves of 70.28 million tonnes (mt). The other two mines — Ardhagram and Chotia for which bidding is on — have extractable reserves of 19.29 mt and 13.57 mt, respectively.

Earlier tweeting on auctions, Mr. Swarup said “coal block auction gets under way on the fourth day adding that poor States will reap benefits of coal block auctions.”

The five companies vying for Ardhagram coal mine are Easternrange Coal Mining Pvt. Ltd., Monnet Ispat and Energy, OCL Iron & Steel, SS Natural Resources Pvt. Ltd. and Visa Steel. The technically qualified bidders for Chotia mines are: Balco, Godawari Power & Ispat, Hindalco Industries, Prakash Industries, Rungta Mines and Ultratech Cement.

Source: PTI