Consultancy firm Deloitte, which had been selected to study the restructuring of state-owned Coal India (CIL), is likely to submit it final report to the Coal Ministry by May, according to an official source.

“The consultancy firm was asked by the ministry to submit the final report by March-end. But there has been some delays,”  the source added. Deloitte has already submitted its draft report to the ministry.

The Planning Commission and other high-level panels such as the Expert Committee on Road Map for Coal Sector Reforms, also known as the T L Shankar Committee, had recommended restructuring CIL in view of the increasing demand for coal, the need to enhance production and to make the sector competitive. CIL, the single largest coal producer in the world, accounts for 81 per cent of India’s output of the fuel. It operates through 81 mining areas and has seven wholly owned coal producing subsidiaries and one mine planning and consultancy company.

The Coal Ministry had selected Deloitte from among nine shortlisted companies, including ICICI Securities, KPMG, Ernst & Young, McKinsey and Crisil. As many as 17 firms, including SBI Capital and Infosys, had responded to the invitation for consultancy proposal put out last year.

The Coal Ministry had informed the Prime Minister’s Office that it would appoint a consultant with international expertise to frame the time line to take forward the restructuring of the miner.