Coal India 2010-11 coal imports to jump
The country's demand for coal is rising, particularly from the steel and the power sectors which are expanding capacity, but domestic coal output targets are being scaled down.
Coal imports by state-run Coal India Ltd are likely to soar to 6-10 million tonnes in fiscal 201011 from an expected 1.5-1.7 million tonnes in the current fiscal year, DC Garg, chairman of the company's subsidiary Western Coalfields Ltd told Reuters. The country's demand for coal is rising, particularly from the steel and the power sectors which are expanding capacity, but domestic coal output targets are being scaled down because of delays in several projects. "Demand will come out strongly," Garg said. On Tuesday, Coal India, the country's largest coal producer, said it would miss its output target for the financial year that ends on March 31, and would scale down its output target for 2011-12 due to delayed projects. Garg said India's coal imports may rise to 50 million tonnes in 2011-12 from about 30 million tonnes as demand from steel plants is expected to rise in step with capacity expansion. Coal shortages have hit India's power output and firms such as the National Aluminium Corp have faced precariously low stocks of the fuel. India's power generation in December grew 5.45%, but would have grown 6.5% if adequate coal was available at plants of NTPC Ltd, India's leading power producer, the power regulator said last month.