Commercial coal mining to modernize India's coal sector: Vinod Kumar Tiwari, Additional Secretary, Ministry of Coal

Jan 28, 2020

 

KOLKATA, 28 January 2020: Mr Vinod Kumar Tiwari, Additional Secretary, Ministry of Coal, Government of India, today said that commercial mining of coal will be a very important step in modernizing the coal sector in the country.

 

Speaking at a stakeholder consultation on discussion paper of Ministry of Coal for 'Auction of Coal Mines for Sale of Coal', organised by the Ministry in partnership with FICCI, Mr Tiwari said that the coal mining framework will also secure India's long-term economic growth.

 

"Commercial coal mining and its associated competitive pressures will bring in new capabilities that will help all the organizations including the existing and also the prospective ones," he said. Private sector investments for commercial coal mines will also have a significant role to play in realizing Prime Minister Mr Narendra Modi's vision of making India a $5 trillion economy, he added.

 

Mr Tiwari further said that commercial coal mining will help cater to the demand and supply gap of coal, a significant portion of which is currently imported. The Ministry will consider suggestions from stakeholders before finalizing the bidding process.

 

Recently, Mineral Laws (Amendment) Ordinance, 2020 has been promulgated wherein end-use restrictions of the mining blocks has been removed and there is no barrier of prior experience for participation in the auction.

 

Further, there is no technical and financial eligibility criterion to participate in the auctions and the move will lead to opening up the coal sector for commercial mining by allowing local as well as global firms for development of a vibrant coal market.

 

Representatives from a wide spectrum of industry Tata Steel, Birla Corporation, CESC, JSW Steel, Jindal Steel & Power, Karam Chand Thapar & Bros, McNally Bharat Engineering Company, Mineline, Shyam Metalics and Energy, Sri Balaji Metals & Minerals, UltraTech Cement, United Exploration India, Neo Metaliks, Adani Mining, Ambey Mining, JMS Mining Services and Mjunction participated in the consultation.

 

Mr Shekhar Saran, CMD, CMPDI, also attended the roundtable, which is second in the series of stakeholders consultations being organized to gain industry's views on the upcoming auction of coal mines for sale of coal. This being the second in series of consultations, the first one having been organised in Delhi by Ministry of Coal and  FICCI on Jan 23.