Coal India to sign FSAs with pvt power cos by Mar 31
The government has initiated clearance of coal supplies to private-sector power producers, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's office said via social networking site Twitter.
February 16, 2012 / 22:00 IST
The government has initiated clearance of coal supplies to private-sector power producers, reports CNBC-TV18.
State-run Coal India (CIL), the largest coal producer in the country has agreed to sign the Fuel Supply Agreements (FSA) with private-sector power firms to ensure sufficient supply of dry fuel, even if the coal miner has to import it.
After a meeting of power companies with Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Friday, it was decided that the FSA will ensure that CIL will provide full quantity of coal sought by the power companies. However, the agreement will extend to those power units that would be ready by March 15.
Singh last month pledged to help alleviate chronic power shortages after a meeting with executives from the power sector.
The move will benifit upto 50,000 megawatt of capacity addition in the power sector.
It may also be recalled that the Planning Commission had earlier said it is likely fix a target for about 1,00,000 MW of capacity addition in the power sector in the 12th Plan (2012-17).
The demand-supply gap for coal, which stood at 84 million tonnes (MT) last fiscal, is likely to touch 142 MT in the current financial year.
Coal India, which accounts for over 80% of domestic coal production, has scaled down its production target for the current fiscal to 440 MT from 452 MT. The public sector firm missed its production target last fiscal and produced 431.325 MT of coal against the revised target of 440.20 MT.Also read: PM has resolved a longstanding issue, says Power Producers Asso Discover the latest Business News, Sensex, and Nifty updates. Obtain Personal Finance insights, tax queries, and expert opinions on Moneycontrol or download the Moneycontrol App to stay updated!
