India’s coal dispatches rise over 5% on year in August

India’s total coal dispatches in August 2022 was 63.43 million tonnes (mnt), up 5.4% y-o-y, while m-o-m dispatches fell by 6%.

It may be noted that production in August was 58.33 mnt. The dispatch was more than production because of excess inventory kept by miners.

Moreover, total dispatches in FY’23 till August (April-August) rose by 12% y-o-y to 356 mnt.

Supply shortage to non-power sector continues

As per sector-wise dispatch, allocation to the non-power sector in August was 9.34 mnt, a decline of 18% y-o-y. The non-power sector consumers include aluminium, cement, sponge iron, paper, ceramics, tea, textile and captive power producers (CPPs).

The drop in allocation to NPS was despite an increase in total coal dispatches as supplies were diverted to the power sector which rose by 11% y-o-y to 54 mnt.

A similar trend was visible in FY’23 (April-August 2022), coal allocated to the non-power sector was 50.5 mnt, a decrease of 19% y-o-y, despite dispatches increased by 12% in the said period.

CPPs: Increase in allocation 

However, allocation to CPPs surged from 19% y-o-y to 3 mnt in August, while monthly allocation was up by 8%.

An increase in allocation to CCPs is a welcome step as otherwise CPPs would have to purchase power in the open market. As a result, there will be less energy available for domestic consumption.

Company-wise dispatches

Coal dispatches in India were conducted by Coal India Ltd (CIL), Singareni Collieries Company Ltd (SCCL) and captive /other miners.

During August, CIL and captive/other miners registered a growth of 5.11% and 26.29% as compared to last year by dispatching 51.12 mnt and 8.28 mnt, respectively.

However, SCCL registered a negative growth of 19.14% y-o-y during the month because of heavy rains.

CIL dispatches were 80% of India’s total coal dispatches. MCL, SECL and NCL were the top three subsidiaries with dispatches of 15.3 mnt, 11.4 mnt and 10.7 mnt, respectively in August.

Except for WCL and BCCL, all of CIL’s subsidiaries had dispatches increasing over the previous year.

WCL’s dispatches fell by 23.5% amid flooding of mines, while BCCL’s dispatches were marginally short by 3% y-o-y in August.