Speaking to reporters here, he said that by March end 2023 the coal stock at thermal power plants in the country will stand at 40 million tonne.
“On October 1, we had 26 million tonne. On november 1 the stock stood at almost 30 million tonne and by end of march, for the first time in history we wil have minimum 40 million stocks at TPP (thermal power plants). This time is I am very confident, there will not be any coal shortage," he said.
The statement gains significance as during the April-May this year India witnessed an acute coal shortage situation and and the coal stock at plants fell below the 20 million tonne mark, making the Centre direct states to import coal.
On Thursday, the ministry launched the sixth round of coal mine auction, involving 141 mines across 11 states.
Addressing the event, Joshi said that it is the biggest auction in terms of number mines in the country undertaken so far. He added that previously auctioned mines have started production and hoped that 10 to 15 million tonne coal will be produced from new mines by next year.
In the current financial year, India is expected to produce 900 million tonne, he said.
Addressing the programme, finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman said that states would be able to the major beneficiaries of these auctions as it will add to their revenue.
“The moment the states are able to cooperate and also allowed for greater exploration of coal, you are going to be able to earn much. The (new mining) policy gives the revenue which is so much required by the states. States can directly benefit from today’s auction because they are ones who are going to be hosting these mines and they are the ones who are holding this wealth of coal and this auction is going to open up their capacities," she said.
Stressing on the need for coal gasification, she said that the finance ministry has been working along with the coal ministry to boost gasification of the fossil fuel in the country. Sitharaman was of the view that at a time when global gas prices are soaring and uncertainties persist, India’s coal gasification plans would play a major role.
The finance minister also urged the coal mining companies to take up coal gasification in a the energy transition targets.
“With the global gas prices being what they are and with the uncertainties which are prevailing, India’s coal gasification actually takes a very big importance and that’s where I think, there should also be equal interest shown for gasification attempts which the ministry is doing. Now the finance ministry has very clearly been with the (coal) ministry in ensuring Indian stock is also used for producing gas, because gas is going to be the transitional energy when you are trying to move from fossil fuel to renewable energy," she said.
Sitharaman added that the recent initiatives to unlock the coal sector, and the mining sector reforms are providing the “right fillip" to the economy.
Finance Ministry will be extending all help for coal gasification and incentives in commercial mining, she added.
133 coal mines were put up for auction in the sixth round of commercial auctions, out of which 71 are new coal mines and 62 coal mines are rolling over from earlier tranches of commercial auctions. Additionally, 8 coal mines under second attempt of fifth round of commercial auctions were included for which single bids were received in the first attempt.
A coal ministry said that mines falling under protected areas, wildlife sanctuaries, critical habitats, having forest cover greater than 40%, heavily built-up area among others have been excluded. The block boundaries of some of the coal mines where there was presence of dense habitation, high green cover or critical infrastructure etc. have been modified based on comments received during stakeholder consultations to enhance bidders’ interest and participation in these coal blocks.
The mines being auctioned are spread across coal or lignite bearing states of Jharkhand, Chhattisgarh, Odisha, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, West Bengal, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Rajasthan, Tamil Nadu and Bihar.
