CIL wants change in coal distribution policy

State-owned Coal India Ltd has said it is in favour of an amendment to the New Coal Distribution Policy (NCDP) of 2007 which is scheduled to come up for review this week.

"The current coal distribution policy needs to be changed as a few things are just not practical. CIL should not be asked to meet everybody's demand and verify end use of its coal. We want change mainly on these two issues," Coal India Chairman N C Jha said here.

He said Coal India could be asked to produce coal from domestic sources to the extent allowed. When coal was under OGL, CIL should not be asked to meet everybody's coal demand, he argued.

Jha said the end use verification of CIL coal should not be thrust upon it, as it required a large number of people and should be done by a separate agency.

Preliminary talks were held in the coal ministry and it would now get response from different sectors, he said.

He said the NCDP was scheduled to come up for review on June 8.

Turning to meeting the coal requirement of upcoming thermal power projects, he said letters of assurance (LOAs) were given for over 82,000 MW power in the 11th plan period which needed additional production of 400 million tonne (MT) if all the projects were implemented.

But as per projection CIL could produce 560 MT of coal by 2016-17 which indicated that the company could produce slightly over an additional 100 MT from its current level of production, Jha said.

CIL's production target for this fiscal has been fixed at 452 MT.

The CIL chairman said if the company has to meet the country's increased demand, it should not only get coal blocks but be allowed mining and timely clearance.

"We are asked to fulfil everybody's demand even if it requires importing coal on one hand, while the company is not allowed to mine in many areas due to various environmental issues," he said.

The CIL chairman said the company has offered to supply 347 MT of coal to power utilities in the current financial year, which is 43 MT more than the previous year.