SAIL exploring new markets to source coking coal: Chairman Anil Chaudhary

State-run steel maker SAIL is exploring new markets for the sourcing of coking coal with a view to reducing dependence on select countries for the raw material, its chairman Anil Kumar Chaudhary said.

According to official data, the country imports about 56 million tonne (MT) of coking coal worth around Rs 72,000 crore. Out of this, about 45 MT is imported from Australia alone, and the remaining from South Africa, Canada and the US.

“Domestic steelmakers depend heavily on imported coking coal. For SAIL as well metallurgical coal (coking coal) is largely procured through imports apart from some domestic sourcing. We are looking at developing new destinations and vendors for sourcing coking coal from the international market to avoid dependence on limited sources,” the SAIL chairman told PTI in an interview.