The coal ministry has initiated the sale of coal blocks for commercial mining envisaged under the third tranche of auctions by revealing the technical bids submitted by the interested bidders.
Indicating an increased participation compared to the previous round, a total of 53 bids came in from 37 different firms with many making an entry for the first time in these auctions.
However, interest was elicited for only 20 out of the 88 blocks offered, throwing up the lowest success rate, at 23%, seen over the total three tranches, while considering the blocks that had received technical bids in the first attempt.
Snapshot of technical bids in first attempt
Out of these 20 blocks, only 10 receiving multiple bids would eventually reach the final round of bidding in accordance with the methodology defined for the auctions.
Blocks that receive a single bid would feature in a fresh round of sale in a second attempt, which is expected to commence after the conclusion of this round of the auctions.
On the other hand, the auction process in case of blocks that receive no bid is over for now, but these could be considered for the next tranches of the auctions.
Namchik Namphuk bags highest number of bids
Namchik Namphuk, the sole block put on sale from Arunachal Pradesh, has attracted a maximum of 12 bids in the technical round.
The block, previously held under the custodian of Coal India Ltd, comprises a mixed bag of coking and non-coking coal reserves. Multiple bids were also seen for both the coal blocks that were offered from Assam.
In particular, greater response was seen for the blocks which possess requisite clearances and offer superior grades.
On the other hand, indicating the risk averseness with respect to exploration activity and the long gestation period involved, only four coal blocks with partial exploration done had fetched bids in the technical round.
Block-wise technical bid status
Note: Brinda and Sasai are different blocks.
Hindalco leads among end-user industries
Five companies have submitted three bids each, the highest so far in this auction. Hindalco Industries is also amongst them.
Other end-user industries that have shown interest in bagging a coal block includes the likes of TANGEDCO, Jindal Steel and Power, Vedanta, JSW Steel among others.
Apparently, several mining companies are also in contention with the likes of Singareni Collieries Company Ltd (SCCL), the state-run mining company, making a surprise entry for the first time.
What’s next
The bids will be examined by a multi-disciplinary technical evaluation committee. Thereafter, technically qualified bidders will be shortlisted for participation in the electronic auction to be conducted on the MSTC portal from 7 Jan’22, next year.
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