The "monsoon management plan" is being developed by the coal ministry to provide sufficient fuel supply for power plants during the rainy season, when both coal output and evacuation are impacted. According to the strategy, coal companies would concentrate on first-mile connectivity for coal evacuation, supply more from shallow locations, and build cement roads for truck mobility, according to coal secretary Amrit Lal Meena.
"With these, we are hopeful that the availability of coal at power plants will be sufficient and on target," the man stated. The second quarter is now the focus of planning as there is currently less coal stock depletion due to favourable weather conditions, but supply may become constrained due to rains impacting operations. In order to meet anticipated increased demand in April, the government concentrated on delivering big
volumes in the first quarter. First-mile connection describes the movement of coal from mine pitheads to dispatch terminals without the need of roads. It consists of railway sidings close to coal mines as well as a mechanised coal transportation and loading system that sizes and crushes coal while offering quick computer-assisted loading. Cemented roads have already been built in the larger mines, which will be helpful during the rainy season, according to Meena.
Mines that are relatively recent and have less depth than older, deeper mines are referred to as shallow mines. The goal for the quarter between July and September of this year is 203.2 million metric tonnes of total coal production, while the objective for offtake to power plants is 180.3 mt. The target for offtake to power plants for the same period in the previous financial year was 155.9 million metric tonnes, but due to increased domestic fuel demand, the actual delivery was substantially higher at 165 mt.
Meena, there haven't been any transport issues thus far because the railways have been providing enough rakes. At power plants, the amount of coal on hand as of April 30 was 35.8 mt, a significant increase from the 21.9 mt on the same day previous year. Over the past four months, the stock at power plants has consistently stayed above 30 million metric tonnes, indicating that the supply and demand are being met, according to Meena.
The depletion in the summer months beginning in March has been minimal, he continued, and adequate rakes for coal transport have also been given thus far. In April, when a 231 GW peak was anticipated, the weather in north India was colder than anticipated, which also helped restrain demand. The demand peaked at 216 GW on April 17 so far.
