Centre identifies 75 blocks for allocation

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New Delhi, Sep 5 : The Centre has identified 74 to 75 coal blocks to be handed over to private companies for captive use in the next round of coal and lignite block allocations.

“We have identified about 74 to 75 coal blocks and 20-odd are lignite blocks. The allocation will be either through the screening committee route or competitive bidding,” a top government official said. Since 1993, the government has allocated 182 captive coal blocks to both private and public players. Under the government policy, iron, steel, power and cement players can allocate coal blocks for captive use.

The power ministry had recently made a slew of suggestions for hassle-free coal linkages to power projects. The ministry suggested that all future coal blocks earmarked for private power developers should be allocated on the basis of tariff-based competitive bidding.

Coal India Ltd (CIL), the largest coal producer, supplies coal to most of the thermal power plants of the country. CIL is also in the process of revamping its production through various methods.

Next month it will come out with tenders to develop 19 coal washeries to wash 100 metric tonne of coal. “The tender process will start next month and will be spread over next 3-4 months,” CIL chairman P S Bhattacharyya told reporters on the sidelines ICC Coal Summit.

The company is also in the process of developing 18 underground abandoned mines, which also includes coking coal mines.

“These coal mines have significant reserves and we would like the major mining players to show interest in them,” Bhattacharyya said.