Coal India Ltd will invest nearly Rs20,000 crore in rail infrastructure with a view to raising annual transportation capacity by an additional 330 million tonne over the next three years as the world’s largest coal miner chases an annual production target of a billion tonne.
In addition to reducing transportation of coal by road, the projects will allow quicker despatch of emergency supplies and prevent recurrence of fuel shortage at power plants, as was seen in the July-September period.
The move also indicates that coal will remain king in India in the foreseeable future as a source of affordable power as the country works towards lifting millions of citizens out of poverty.
Some Rs 7,994 crores will be spent on constructing three railway lines for CCL (Central Coalfields Ltd) and MCL (Mahanadi Coalfields Ltd) mines. These projects will enhance transportation capacity by 170 million tonne per year (mtpa) An additional capital outlay of Rs 11,656 crore has been earmarked for projects in joint venture with railways PSUs and the governments of Chattisgarh, Jharkhand and Odisha to move 160 mtpa of coal. CIL has 64% stake in the ventures.
A company statement on Tuesday said some of these projects are already operational and the planned investment would help improve dispatch from new and expanded capacity of existing mines.
“It is important to have a robust coal transport mechanism in place to cope with increased volumes of production in the ensuing years. We are laying the groundwork for it,” a senior company executive said.
About 69% of CIL’s overall coal output is expected from CCL, MCL and SECL (South Eastern Coalfields Ltd) by 2024-25 and it is in these fields that the company is aggressively laying the foundation for evacuation infrastructure.
Currently, CIL’s rail transportation from the company’s sidings accounts for 56% of total supplies. If loading from goods sheds, private washeries and MGR is also considered, then the percentage of rail movement of coal rises to 79%.
Source : TOI
