CIL blames rains for low output, plans revival

Coal India Ltd (CIL), which missed production target in the first quarter last fiscal largely due to heavy rains, has drawn up strategies to ensure that output does not slip this monsoon season.

The issue had also come up for discussion during the review meeting chaired by Coal Minister Sriprakash Jaiswal on Wednesday.

[caption id=“attachment_345350” align=“alignleft” width=“380” caption=“CIL has planned strategies like more evacuation of coal and removal of overburden before the onset of rains. Reuters”]  [/caption]

“So that the production does not dip during the monsoon, CIL has chalked out strategies like more evacuation of coal and removal of overburden before the onset of rains. The public sector firm might also rejig its production plans,” a top official in the coal ministry said.

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The public sector firm had missed the production target of 98.6 million tonnes (MT) for the first quarter of 2011-12 by 2.3 MT. CIL had blamed early rains and inclement weather in the eastern region for playing spoilsport in achieving the target for the first quarter last fiscal.

As of now, CIL has an inventory stock of 64 million tonnes (MT), the official said. The company’s overburden removal during April and May was 137.52 million cubic m (MCuM), registering a growth of 10.3

per cent over the same period last fiscal.

The PSU firm produced 69.38 MT of coal in April-May this year, registering a growth of 5.6 percent over the same period in 2011-12. The PSU firm had produced 65.67 MT coal in the first two months of the last financial year.

It had achieved 435.84 MT in 2011-12 against the targeted 447 MT. The PSU firm has set a production target of 464 MT for the current financial year.

PTI