NEW DELHI: The Central government’s plan to completely rely on Coal India (CIL) for domestic needs and have zero imports seems to have toppled, with coal imports soaring 8.8 per cent to 233.56 million tonnes (MT) in 2018-19 amid domestic transport woes and rising power demands.
In 2017-18, coal imports were at 214.61 MT, according to provisional data by mjunction services, based on monitoring of vessels’ positions and data received from shipping companies. “…coal and coke imports during 2018-19 through 31 major and non-major ports are estimated to have increased by 8.83 per cent to 233.56 MT (provisional) as compared to 214.61 MT (revised) imported in 2017-18,” the joint venture between Tata Steel and SAIL, which also publishes research reports on coal and steel verticals, said in a report. Non-coking coal imports were at 164.21 MT in FY19, about 13.25 per cent increase over 144.99 MT recorded in FY18, while coking coal import was almost flat at 47.73 MT, against 47.22 MT in 2017-18.
