India: Portside thermal coal stocks rise sharply w-o-w on east coast build-up

• Selective restocking seen amid steady demand
• Sharp gains at Paradip, Dhamra offset fall at Mundra

Portside thermal coal inventories across India increased 5.8% w-o-w to 13.10 million tonnes (mnt) in week 13, compared with 12.38 mnt in week 12, indicating a strong uptrend supported by cargo arrivals across both coasts.

East coast: Strong recovery led by Paradip, Dhamra

On the east coast, Paradip surged 34.7% to 1.40 mnt, while Dhamra increased 12.3% to 1.02 mnt, indicating fresh cargo inflows.

Vizag rose 5.0% to 0.75 mnt, while Tuticorin increased 24.0% to 0.67 mnt and Gopalpur rose 17.7% to 0.08 mnt.

However, Kakinada declined 13.9% to 0.33 mnt, Krishnapatnam fell 8.5% to 0.17 mnt, and Haldia slipped 6.4% to 0.16 mnt, reflecting selective evacuation. Gangavaram remained largely stable at 0.15 mnt.

West coast: Mixed trend with sharp corrections

On the west coast, trends remained mixed. Mundra declined sharply by 14.6% to 1.51 mnt, while Navlakhi fell 12.6% to 0.69 mnt.

However, Kandla rose 26.8% to 0.77 mnt, while Mangalore increased 7.2% to 0.80 mnt and Dahej edged up 2.7% to 0.78 mnt.

Hazira increased 4.9% to 2.00 mnt, maintaining its position as the largest stockholder. Tuna rose 19.6% to 0.29 mnt, while Jamnagar surged 137.4% to 0.17 mnt, indicating fresh arrivals. Magdalla increased 4.4% to 0.79 mnt, while Bhavnagar declined 7.0% to 0.19 mnt. Karaikal slipped 8.4% to 0.35 mnt, and Pipavav saw fresh build-up to 0.04 mnt.

Buyer-wise stock position

Adani Enterprises’ inventories declined 7.8% w-o-w to 3.35 mnt, while Agarwal Coal’s stocks increased 5.2% to 1.02 mnt, reflecting mixed stockholding trends among key players.

Market insight

The overall stock build was driven by strong inflows at key east coast ports such as Paradip and Dhamra, along with selective gains at west coast ports like Kandla.

Despite the rise, declines at major hubs like Mundra indicate ongoing evacuation, suggesting a balance between fresh arrivals and consumption. The market continues to reflect selective restocking alongside steady demand conditions.