New Delhi – On Wednesday Parliament was briefed that the Ministry of Coal has sold 133 coal mines through 12 auctions held over the past five years. The sales are projected to bring in about Rs 38,710 crore each year, require an investment of Rs 41,407 crore, and create roughly 373,199 jobs.
Union Minister of Coal and Mines, G. Kishan Reddy, confirmed that the combined peak output of these mines is 276.04 million tonnes per annum (MTPA). He also noted that the government has already pinpointed 32 abandoned mines that could be re‑opened under a revenue‑sharing arrangement. Twenty‑eight mines have received acceptance letters, adding a capacity of 39.28 MTPA, while four remain in the re‑tendering phase. Coal mining has already begun at the PB Project of Bharat Coking Coal Ltd. (BCCL) and the Gopinathpur Project of East Coast Coal Limited (ECL) during the FY 2025‑26.
For the 2025‑26 fiscal year, the all‑India target for raw coal production is 1,157 million tonnes. Coal India Ltd. (CIL) is aiming for 875 MT, Singareni Collieries Co. Ltd. (SCCL) for 72 MT, and the remaining 210 MT will come from captive, commercial and other sources. The Ministry’s long‑term ambition is to reach about 1.5 billion tonnes by FY 2029‑30.
Minerals produced by public sector undertakings must meet stringent environmental standards. Before any new project or expansion is approved, the required environmental clearances are obtained, and an Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) together with an Environmental Management Plan (EMP) is drafted and enforced. Land reclamation follows the approved mining plan and EMP guidelines.
To improve coal quality while reducing environmental harm, all new washeries and those planned for the future are fitted with cutting‑edge beneficiation technologies, such as Heavy Media Cyclones, Teeter Bed Separators, Spiral Concentrators, and Froth Flotation units. These facilities are designed to achieve zero effluent discharge. Existing older washeries are also being modernised to boost efficiency and minimise environmental footprints.
In the realm of coal gasification, the government approved a comprehensive financial assistance scheme on 24 January 2024, allocating ₹8,500 crore to support coal and lignite gasification projects. Seven projects have been chosen, each at different stages of implementation, and they are expected to use roughly 11.755 million tonnes of coal per year once operational.
Finally, Coal India Limited is reviving certain legacy and non‑operational underground mines through a revenue‑sharing model for abandoned and discontinued sites. In this model, CIL and its subsidiaries invite developers and operators to reopen, recover, rehabilitate, develop, and run suitable mines. The operators produce and supply coal to CIL and share revenue with the company based on the highest bid’s quoted rate.
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