New Delhi: Union Minister of Power, New and Renewable Energy, Shri R.K. Singh reviewed the coal stock position in all thermal power plants including those plants which are supplying power to distribution companies of Delhi. Yesterday on 9th October, 2021, the total despatch of coal from all sources (Coal India Limited, Singareni Collieries Company, Captive Coal Mines and imported coal) was 1.92 million tonnes while the total consumption was 1.87 million tonnes. Thus, the coal despatch have exceeded the consumption, thereby indicating shift to gradual building up of coal stock. Ministry of Coal and Coal India have assured that there is ample coal available in the country to meet the demand of power plants. Any fear of disruption in power supply is entirely misplaced. The coal stock at power plant is sufficient for more than 4 days’ requirement and as the coal supply is being ramped up by CIL, the coal stock at power plant would gradually improve.

New Delhi: The Minister has directed that distribution companies of Delhi will get as much as power as requisitioned by them as per their demand. NTPC and DVC have been directed to give full availability as per the requirement of DISCOMs. GAIL India Limited has been advised to make gas available from all sources viz., APM, SPOT, LT-RLNG sources to gas based power plants in Delhi. NTPC has also been advised to offer normative declared capacity to the Delhi DISCOMs as per their allocations from gas based power plants under respective PPAs. If any DISCOMs is found to resort to load shedding despite being power available as per PPA, action would be initiated against them.

Despite heavy rains in the month of August – September 2021, steep hike in power demand due to economic recovery and increase in prices of imported coal, domestic coal supply have sustained the operation of power plants and all out efforts are being made to ensure full power supply to the DISCOMs as per there requirements.

Coal Availability is Sufficient to Meet Power Plant Demands – Clarifies Ministry of Coal

The Ministry of Coal reassures that ample coal is available in the country to meet the demand of power plants. Any fear of disruption in power supply is entirely misplaced. The coal stock at power plant end is about 72 Lakh tonnes, sufficient for 4 days requirement, and that the Coal India Limited (CIL) end is more than 400 Lakh tonnes, which is being supplied to the power plants.

The domestic coal based power generation has grown by nearly 24% in this year (till September 2021) based on a robust supply from the coal companies. The daily average coal requirement at the power plants is about 18.5 Lakh tonnes of coal per day whereas the daily coal supply has been around 17.5 lakh tonnes per day. Due to extended monsoons the despatches were constrained. The coal available at the power plants is a rolling stock which gets replenished by the supplies from the coal companies on a daily basis. Therefore, any fear of coal stocks depleting at the power plant end is erroneous. In fact this year, domestic coal supply has substituted imports by a substantial measure..

Despite heavy rains in the coal field areas, CIL had supplied more than 255 MT coal to power sector in this year which is the highest ever H-1 supply from CIL to power sector. Out of the total coal supply from all sources, present coal supply from CIL to power sector is more than 14 lakh tonnes per day and with the receding rains, this supply has already increased to 15 lakh tonnes and is set to increase to more than 16 lakh tonnes per day by the end of October 2021. The supply from SCCL and captive coal blocks shall contribute to another 3 lakh plus tonnes of coal every day.

Domestic coal supplies have supported power generation in a major way despite heavy monsoons, low coal imports and a steep hike in power demand due to economic recovery. It is expected that coal supplies are set to be a record high in the current financial year.

Due to high international prices of coal, supply of power even under PPAs by import based power plants has reduced by almost 30 % while domestic based power supply has gone up nearly 24 % in H1 of this year. The imported coal based power plants have generated about 25.6 BU against a program of 45.7 BU.

It may be noted that the comfortable coal position in the country is reflected by the fact that the CIL has been supplying more than 2.5 lakh tonnes (apprx.) daily to meet the demand of non power industries like Aluminium, Cement, Steel etc. along with supply of coal to thermal plants of the country. PIB