Coal India has said that coal demand in the country could rise in the coming months as power demand began picking up from January. The public sector company said it is readying its inventory and extraction operations to meet demand and reduce imports during peak months.
“The cumulative quantity of CIL’s pithead stock, plant stock at domestic coal-based thermal power stations and exposed coal in-situ provides strong operational assurance,” said a senior official of Coal India said in a statement.
Coal India is expecting a high demand in the coming months as the power demand is expected to rise much higher due to an early summer this year. The coal import bill is expected to increase as the international coal price has risen by $5 per metric ton in February.
Coal India readies inventory
Coal India said that, along with its producing subsidiaries, it is holding sizeable pithead coal stocks of approximately 115 Million Tonnes as of 26 February 2026, and these are projected to increase further by the end of FY26.
Secondly, Coal India said, the coal stocks at domestic coal-based power plants stand at nearly 55 Million Tonnes, and the transit stock at goods sheds, washeries, and ports stands at 5.5 million tonnes.
“The on-tap coal accessibility of coal is approximately 175.5 MTs through these sources. This level of domestic coal sufficiency in the system can meet any spurt in power demand and from other sectors as well and dispels coal scarcity concerns” Coal India said in statement.
Furthermore, regarding extraction-ready stock, Coal India said its in-situ coal exposure stood at 60.2 million tonnes at mid-February. The company said that a large quantities of coal are already uncovered through overburden removal and are ready for extraction and supply at short notice.
India’s coal production and requirements
In FY25, India’s total coal consumption stood at 1,313.5 million tonnes. While the country’s domestic production was 1,092.6 million tonnes, it imported 248.5 million to meet the requirements.