Government puts 106 coal mines on sale in 7th round of auction

Of the total mines offered under seventh round, 61 blocks are partially explored and 45 mines are fully explored

The Centre on Wednesday launched the 7th round of commercial coal mines’ auction putting on sale 106 mines spread across 11 states including Jharkhand, Chhattisgarh, Maharashtra and Tamil Nadu.

Of the total mines offered under the seventh round, 61 blocks are partially explored and 45 mines are fully explored.

The Ministry of Coal also signed agreements for 29 coal mines which were auctioned under the 6th round. The 6th round of auction was conducted in the first half of March. The Centre started the commercial coal mines auction in 2020.

The cumulative peak-rated capacity of 29 coal mines awarded in the 6th round of auction is 74 million tonnes per annum. These mines upon operationalisation will generate annual revenue of Rs 14,497 crore and provide employment to about one lakh people, the ministry of coal said.

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Successful bidders of the sixth round of auction include JSW Cements, Ultratech Cements, Ambuja Cements, and Jindal Power Ltd.

Coal and Mines Minister Pralhad Joshi said the government will provide incentives to successful bidders who start early production.

Joshi said coal production is expected to increase by 14 per cent to touch a record high of 880 million tonnes in 2022-23 while the off-take is likely to touch 900 million tonnes during the year.

The minister claimed that India would become a coal exporter by 2025-26. Currently, India is the second largest importer of coal. Nearly a fifth of the country’s annual coal requirement is met through imports.

Launching the auction process Defence Minister Rajnath Singh underlined the importance of coal in strengthening the economy. “Our energy consumption has grown in the last few years and will continue to grow, and to meet this need we will have to start taking efforts from today,” Singh said.

The auction will be held online through a transparent two-stage process, on the basis of percentage revenue share. SBI Capital Markets Limited, the sole transaction advisor to the Ministry of Coal for commercial coal mine auctions, is assisting the ministry in conducting the auction process.