Team News Riveting
Kolkata, April 1
State-run Coal India Limited (CIL) ended financial year 2021-22 (FY22) scripting a historic high in coal production, off-take and coal despatch to the power plants.
Amid rising coal demand from the country’s generation companies, CIL’s supplies to the power sector. soared to a record 540.4 million tonnes (MTJ with a whopping 95.4 MT volume increase. This represents 21.4 per cent growth compared to 445 MT supplies of FY21.
Even compared to standard pandemic free FY20 and FY19, the growth in supplies to power sector logged 16 per cent and 10 per cent respectively.
The sharp 95.4 MT supply expansion in FY22 is higher than the collective increase achieved during the previous seven year period. Coal supplies to power sector rose to 445 MT in 2020-21 from 353.8 MT in 2013-14, up by 91.2 MT.
CIL has turned out a prolific performance, even as the second wave of COVID during the first quarter of FY, and the extended monsoon threatened CIL’s production and loading operations. Handling volatility of coal demand from the power sector in second half of the year was another challenge.
In yet another new high, CIL produced 622.6 MT of coal eclipsing the previous high of 507 MT recorded in 2018-19. After a shrinkage in last two years, CIL came back strongly with 26.4 MT production increase in FY22. Compared to 595.2 MT of FY21, the growth is 4.4 per cent.
CIL’s total off-take at nearly 662 MTs posted a sharp 1S.3 per cent during FY22. The volume expansion is a robust 87.4 MT compared to 574.5 MT of FY21.
The annual increment of 87.4 MT total off-take is more than the combined rise of 85.1 MT of last six years, from 489.4 MT in 2014-15 to 574.5 MT in 2020-21.
CIL’s average loading at the highest ever level of 271.2 rakes per day grew by 12.3 per cent compared to the average of 241.4 rakes loaded in FY21.
With focus on production boost CIL has cleared 16 coal mining projects of which 7 are green field and 9 expansion projects. Combined, they have a total capacity of nearly 100 MT per annum and incremental capacity of 56.7 MT per annum. Of the identified 15 MDO proiects, work order has been issued for 5 projects of96 MT per annum capacity during FY22.
CIL which began FY22 with 99.13 MT of stock at its pitheads could liquidate 38.4 MTs of coal at the end of FY22, the highest liquidation for any year.
Coal output and offtake targets are pegged at 700 MTs for FY23 and the company is committed to achieve it, sustaining the performance of FY22.
