"I am directed to refer to your letter dated June 8, 2010, submitting there with Mining Plan for Kerandari B and C coal blocks, ...to say that the mining plan has been considered and the approval of the central government thereon is hereby conveyed under Section 5 (2) (b) of Mines and Minerals (Development and Regulation) Act, 1957, subject to (certain) conditions," the Union Coal Ministry said in a notification.
The Anil Ambani-led company is understood to have obtained the initial environment clearance as well and has begun the land acquisition process for developing the mines, which have estimated coal reserves of 1.2 billion tonnes allotted for the Ultra Mega Power Project (UMPP) in Hazaribagh district of Jharkhand.
The plan envisages an annual coal production of 40 million tonnes for 30 years.
Among other things, the Coal Ministry in its notification dated October 29, 2010 said, "The company will utilise 16 million tonnes per year of coal exclusively for Tilaiya UMPP and the balance 24 million tonnes will be utilised/disposed off as per the conditions laid down in the allocation letter."
The mines are located around 30 km from the existing line of Indian Railways and could help in supplying coal to other group companies.Last year, Reliance Power was awarded Tilaiya project in Jharkhand, a third such project given to the company, after Sasan in Madhya Pradesh and Krishnapatnam in Andhra Pradesh.
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