Citing lower price of coal in market this year in view of Covid-19, State Steel and Mines Minister Prafulla Kumar Mallik has urged the Centre to suspend the coal block auction process for the time being.
In a letter to Union Coal and Mines Minister Pralhad Joshi, Mallik has urged him to direct the officials to defer the auction process for three months.When there is an improvement in the pandemic situation and market becomes suitable, the coal block allocation process can kick-start, the letter stated. Mallik said that as the pandemic has affected minerals trade, the price of coal has come down significantly as compared to last year. If the auction is held in this scenario, the Government might not be able to get a better price. The lease period of coal blocks is 30 years and a poor response to the auction would affect the State’s coal revenue, the letter further stated.Out of the 41 coal blocks identified by the Centre for auction, nine are located in Odisha with a reserve of 10,750 million tonnes of coal.
As per the revised schedule issued by the Centre, the last date for submission of bids is September 29, 2020 whereas the e-auction will be held from October 19 to November 9, 2020.
