Coal India subsidiary Eastern Coalfields Ltd (ECL) has invited bids to operationalise its five coal projects – Hura-C, Parasea, Tilboni, Lalmatia and Itapara – by initiating tender under the mine-developer-operator (MDO) mode.
These projects, with combined peak rated capacity of 24.43 million tonnes (mnt) per year, are located across the coalfields of Jharkhand and West Bengal.
The company has floated fresh tenders for Hura-C, Parasea, Tilboni and Lalmatia projects while Itapara project has been considered for re-tendering after the previous tender was cancelled due to low valuation.
Projects listed for MDO
Capacity in mnt
Under the MDO mode, bid evaluation for selection of operator is carried out via reverse auction on the basis of mining charge quoted by the bidder.
Thereafter, the operator would execute project development which broadly involve designing, financing, construction and procurement of mining equipment. In addition, operation and maintenance of the mine for excavation and delivery of coal also fall within the scope of the tender.
Specifically, for Lalmatia project, the operator is also required to undertake detailed exploration, planning, obtaining physical possession of the land apart from the development and operation work.
The duration of contract varies between 18-27 years for different projects.
ECL performance
ECL’s physical performance dipped in FY22, with coal production falling 28% y-o-y to 32.4 mnt whereas coal off-take was lower by 14% y-o-y to 36 mnt.
Since the company’s performance largely hinges on the operation of Rajmahal coalfields which has been continuously impacted by land acquisition issues, ECL has decided to engage external resources via MDOs apart from accelerating production through technological intervention in the mines and mechanised means.
The company informed in its annual report that 14 different coal projects are under different stages of implementation. On the other hand, project report for four mines has been shelved.
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