Team News Riveting
Kolkata, March 27
Coal India Limited (CIL) had recorded a robust growth of 24 per cent in the average daily rakes loading in the month of March as compared to previous year’s corresponding period.
As on March 26 of the current month, the National miner loaded an average of 312 rakes per day; clocking a robust 24.6 per cent growth compared to the last year’s corresponding period when 250.3 rakes were loaded. Similarly, average loading to the Power Sector clocked 22.7 per cent growth in March so far at 269.2 rakes compared to 219.4 rakes during the same period last year.
The state-run miner had accelerated the process to transport coal through the tracks and loaded 372.5 rakes on March 19, 2021 from its own sidings, the highest for any day so far during the ongoing fiscal. Of this, the Power Sector accounted for 90 per cent at 335 rakes. In the process five subsidiaries of CIL posted their highest ever loading since inception.
After CIL’s supplies shrunk by 21 per cent amid COVID-19 triggered downward spiral in Q1, the company bounced back strongly by registering 6 per cent growth from July’20 onwards till now.
Progressive rake loading for the year as well till 26 March logged 10.5 per cent growth at 240.8 rakes per day against 217.9 rakes in the same period. Power Sector loading was also up by 7 per cent during the year till March 26. CIL could load 202.6 rakes per day during the year so far, against 189.3 rakes loaded during the same period last year.
Despite growth in rail mode loading and 2 per cent growth in merry-go-round, CIL’s supplies in volumes terms shrunk marginally compared to last year, primarily due to less lifting of committed quantity by power sector and reduced despatch through road mode during the pandemic lockdown resulting in a fall of around 32 per cent. These two factors hit CIL’s supplies during the year.
However, with non-regulated sector customers showing a healthy appetite for coal, loading to the NRS sector jumped up to a phenomenal 33.5 per cent growth during the year – which is highest in the last five years. NRS customers lifted 38.2 MTs of coal during FY’21 till March 26 against 28.6 million tonne in the same period last year.
CIL has taken a slew of measures to improve demand during COVID induced slowdown. These include waiver of performance incentives for power sector FSAs, allowing booking of the coal quantities not lifted for non-power sector FSA consumers in the subsequent months of the FY, extending payment schedule of coal value and lifting validity of the sale order, facilitating conversion of coal transportation mode from road to railway to auction route customers.
These measures helped the company to scale up the supplies to 565.5 million tonne.
