Coal supplied by Coal India Ltd (CIL) to the power sector has decreased 10% y-o-y to 197.89 mn t during the first half period of FY ’21 (Apr-Sep ’20) against 219.85 mn t in Apr-Sep ’19, reflecting sluggish electricity demand.
The decline was greatly reduced with a gradual rise in coal supply during the second quarter, particularly in the month of Sep ’20 where fiscal-high dispatch of 35.74 mn t was reported.
Restoration of special forward auction after a gap of one month also assisted CIL in raising supply for the power producers where 2.03 mn t coal was allocated during Sep ’20.
It is pertinent to note that due to the implications of COVID-19, power generation from the coal-fired plants decreased 13% on the year to 428.85 BU in the six month period, while operating at a lower PLF rate of 49.51%.
Coal requirement was also curtailed by the surplus inventory available to the plants, which has now begun to come down steadily due to improvement in consumption. As per the data provided by CEA, coal stock at plants is currently assessed at 33.14 mn t as on 15 Oct ’20.
Dispatch to Non-power sector:
In the absence of adequate demand from the power sector, CIL managed to increase coal supplies for the non-power sector, which grew 2% y-o-y to 57.08 mn t in the half year period.
Going forward, CIL has identified import substitution as an effective measure for elevating its coal sales, but would require assurance over coal quality to attain the goal.
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