NEW DELHI: The coal ministry on Thursday allotted five coal mines to Birla Corporation, Vedanta, Prakash Industries and Powerplus Traders in the first block auction in four years, which for the first time gives operators the freedom to sell 25% output in the market.
The freedom to sell a quarter of the output is seen as the harbinger of commercial mining in the country, which has been cleared by the government.
Birla Corporation bagged the Bikram and Brahmapuri blocks in Madhya Pradesh, quoting prices of Rs 154 and Rs 156 per tonne, respectively. Vedanta quoted Rs 1,674 per tonne for Jamkhana mine in Odisha. Prakash Industries bagged Bhaskarpara block in Chhattisgarh at Rs 1,100 per tonne and Powerplus Traders was allottd Jagannathpur B block in West Bengal at Rs 185 a tonne.
The ministry expects revenue share of Rs 17,136 crore, excluding royalties, levies and taxes in their 30-year lifespan. The auction was launched last month for 27 mines for non-regulated sectors.
