Coal news and updates

Operational blocks may have to fork out Rs 10,494.36 cr

December 1: The total amount of additional levy payable by the allocatees of coal blocks for the coal produced or likely to be produced up to March, 2015 is estimated at Rs 10,494.36 crore, Piyush Goyal, Minister of State for Power, Coal and New and Renewable Energy (Independent Charge) said in a written reply in the Rajya Sabha on December 1.

Approximately, 325.507 million tons (mt) of coal has been mined from 37 producing coal mines (which have now been cancelled) since commencement of production till October, 2014, the minister said.

The Supreme Court, in its judgment on August 28, 2014, had declared allocations of the coal blocks made through the Screening Committee and government dispensation route since 1993 as illegal and cancelled the allocation of 204 coal blocks out of 218 (except the Tasra coal block allocated to Steel Authority of India Ltd and Pakri Barwadih allocated to National Thermal Power Corporation Limited and 12 coal blocks allocated for ultra mega power projects).

In case of the 42 coal blocks (37 producing and 5 likely to come under production), cancellation shall take effect from March 31, 2015.

The Supreme Court has also imposed an additional levy of Rs 295 per ton on the total coal extracted since the commencement of production from the coal mine to be deposited with the government within the prescribed time period.