NTPC State-owned NTPC is contemplating long-term offtake of coal from foreign coal companies to meet the target of imported coal besides scouting for other sources.
"We are open for long term coal offtake contracts besides scouting for acquisitions," NTPC Chairman Arup Roy Choudhury said.
The statement gets significance after the country's largest power producer did not find synergy with International Coal Ventures, a consortium of PSUs formed for overseas acquisition of coal blocks, and the long term coal import from overseas market by Coal India for large consumers like NTPC was also facing delay.
"Nevertheless, as the use of imported coal increases, so will the cost of power generation. Hence, we intend to cap the total import volume to a maximum of 10% of our total requirement.
"However, there are some thermal power plants which are using 20% imported coal at present," he said.
"We would like to source around 70% of our coal requirement from Coal India, 20% from our captive mines and about 10% from imports."
"The mines we have been allotted has a reserve of 1.8 billion tonne and production from some of these will start soon," Roy Choudhury said.
NTPC wants immediate supply of coal, so it will acquire coal assets which are already in production, or supply, to meet pace with capacity addition.
The company's requirement of coal during 2011-12 will be around 160 million tonne which will rise to 240 million tonne from the next fiscal.
On investments, Choudhury said, the plan was to add about 4,500 MW of fresh generation capacity this year and additional 5,000 MW over the next 10 years.
"It will require investments of about Rs 30,000 crore a year over the next 10 years. This year the total capex is Rs 26,000 crore. Our reserves are around Rs 70,000 crore and the new thermal power units will be built on a 70:30 debt equity ratio."
"The company has also recently raised $500 million of external commercial borrowings as well as a loan of Rs 10,000 crore from State Bank of India," the chairman said.
While for some an ideal world would see no reliance on coal industry to produce electricity, coal statistics would suggest the commodity isn't going anywhere. Coal reports show if we have to live with it, we may as well reduce the impact of coal and CCS seems to be the best solution found to date. Cherry www.coalportal.com
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