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New DelhiThe government is likely to offer 62 coal blocks for commercial mining of the fuel in an auction starting next week.
According to a statement, newly appointed Coal Minister G. Kishan Reddy has directed officials to ensure complete transparency and revenue maximisation.
“Around 62 blocks are likely to be offered without end-user restrictions during the 10th round of auctions. Coal produced from these commercial blocks is allowed to be sold in the free market by the allottees,” the statement said.
The auction of commercial coal blocks was first launched in 2020. Since then, in nine rounds, the ministry has auctioned 107 coal blocks with a maximum rated capacity of 256 million tonnes.
11 commercial coal blocks operational so far
So far, 11 commercial coal blocks have been commissioned. In the last financial year, 17.5 million tonnes of coal was produced from the commercial blocks.
Also read: Government plans greener use of coal and mines as production rises
The Ministry of Coal has also developed a Coal Block Portal on PM Gatishakti National Master Plan to facilitate proper visibility of geographical features for bidders, the statement said.
For FY25, the ministry has set a target of producing 186.63 million tonnes (MT) from these captive and commercial coal mines, and in January it said it plans to increase output to 225.69 MT during FY26, with a final target of 383.56 MT by FY30.
These auctions are a major mode of asset monetisation for the Ministry of Coal.
On April 1, Mint reported that the coal ministry is aiming to monetise assets worth about Rs 1,000 crore. Rs 54,721 crore in FY25, up nearly 9% from last year Target of ₹ 50,118 crore in FY 24.
This will be the first round of auction after Reddy became minister this week.
Also read: Government seeks proposals for coal gasification under VGF scheme
Reddy has also been assigned the Ministry of Mines. A statement issued by the Ministry of Mines on Friday said that Reddy held a review meeting with senior officials of the Ministry, CPSEs and allied offices. Minister of State Satish Chandra Dubey was also present in the meeting.
During the meeting, an overview of the ministry was presented to the minister. The achievements and long-term plans of the Ministry of Mines were also discussed. The discussion focused on important aspects such as automation, innovation, sustainability and implementing advanced technologies to make India self-reliant in the mining sector, the statement said.
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Published: June 14, 2024, 09:13 PM IST
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