Coal India production drops 7.5% in Q1

State-owned CIL on Wednesday said coal production dropped 7.5 per cent to 169.6 million tonnes (MT) in the first quarter of the current fiscal year. The drop came despite robust demand from the power sector, which has seen unprecedented consumption levels this summer.

Coal India Ltd (CIL), which accounts for over 80 per cent of the country’s coal output, produced 183.3 MT in the April-June period of the previous fiscal year.

Coal production by the maharatna firm also dropped marginally by 0.6 per cent to 57.4 MT in June from 57.8 MT in June last year. Coal arms of CIL that registered a negative growth in June include Bharat Coking Coal Ltd (BCCL) and Mahanadi Coalfields Ltd (MCL). Coal India subsidiaries registering positive growth during the month under review are South Eastern Coalfields Ltd (SECL), Eastern Coalfields Ltd (ECL), Central Coalfields Ltd (CCL), Western Coalfields Ltd (WCL), the filing said.

However, Coal India’s offtake, or sales to customers, rose 7.5 per cent to 65.8 MT during the last month over 61.2 MT a year ago. The coal offtake in the April-June period also increased 3.5 per cent to 197.7 MT, over 191 MT in the year-ago period, CIL said.