Public sector miner Coal India Ltd. (CIL) will invest between $20 and $25 billion over the next five years to increase production to one billion tonnes, Coal Minister Piyush Goyal said.
This investment would be utilised in areas such as technology, equipment upgrade and evacuation, the Minister said. A mine-wise plan was now in place to reach this target by 2019-20, he added.
The Minister was here on the occasion of inauguration of CIL’s new corporate headquarters.
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The additional coal (the plan involves doubling of CIL’s present output) would come from existing as well as 100 new mines that are proposed to be opened under this plan.
“While the incremental growth will come in two years, a quantum jump should be visible in the two subsequent years,” Mr. Goyal said. Some old mines would also be replaced.
To a question on funding of this plan, he said CIL’s fundamentals were strong enough to support this programme.
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“This target is doable and achievable,” Mr. Goyal said pointing out that in the first 43 days of this fiscal, production had increased by 11 per cent. During 2014-15, the increase in production was 32 million tonnes.
Imports To a question on imports, he said this trend would decline from this year and import of thermal coal was expected to taper off in two years. However, imports of coking coal might continue, he said.
Coal auctions On coal auctions, he indicated that the government was presently evaluating the status of the mines and the second round of coal block auctions would commence thereafter. The ones offered in the first round were either operational or were in a certain state of preparedness. The Minister said that while the various State governments were to open 39 mines, which they had been allocated, the private sector would start between 70 and 80 mines.
Divestment On divestment, the Minister said that there were no further plans as the government was now at a value-creation stage. “It will be done at an appropriate time,” he said. The Minister also said that the cancellation of coal block allocation was not really a challenge but an opportunity.