Lok Sabha Question No. 2183 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2025-03-12
Subject: Import of Coal
Ministry: COAL
Asked by: Shri Sasikanth Senthil

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF COAL

## LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION No.2183

## TO BE ANSWERED ON 12.03.2025

## Import of Coal

## 2183. SHRI SASIKANTH SENTHIL:

Will the Minister of Coal be pleased to state:

- (a) the total quantity of coal imported during the current year and the reasons for the 7.7 percent increase in import compared to the previous year;
- (b) the projected demand for coking coal in the year 2025 and its correlation with the anticipated growth in steel production capacity;
- (c) the steps being taken to reduce dependence on imported coking coal and enhance domestic production to meet future demand; and
- (d) the initiatives taken to support the steel industry's growing requirement for coal while promoting sustainable practices?

## Answer

## MINISTER OF COAL AND MINES (SHRI G. KISHAN REDDY)

(a): The total import of coal during the current year i.e. April 24 - December 24 was 183.42 Million Tonnes (MT) against 200.19 MT during the corresponding period of last financial year showing negative growth of 8.4%.

(b): An Inter - Ministerial Committee (IMC) has been constituted in the Ministry of Coal on  07/03/2024  for  the  purpose  of  coal  demand  assessment  in  the  country.   The projected  demand  of  coking  coal  for  steel  sector  was  kept  as  111.00  MT  for  the Financial Year 2024-25. The anticipated growth in steel production during the current year is given below: -

| Item                   |   April-February 2024-25 (Prov.) (in Million Tonnes) |   April-February 2023-24 (in Million Tonnes) |   % Change (Prov.) |
|------------------------|------------------------------------------------------|----------------------------------------------|--------------------|
| Crude Steel Production |                                              137.958 |                                      131.407 |                5   |
| Pig Iron Production    |                                                7.661 |                                        6.727 |               13.9 |
| Hot Metal Production   |                                               83.174 |                                       79.371 |                4.8 |

| FINISHED SHEET   | FINISHED SHEET                             | FINISHED SHEET                                                | FINISHED SHEET   |
|------------------|--------------------------------------------|---------------------------------------------------------------|------------------|
| Item             | April-February (Prov.) (in Million Tonnes) | 2024-25 April-February 2023- 24 (in Million Tonnes) % (Prov.) | Change           |
| Production       | 132.572                                    | 126.567                                                       | 4.7              |
| Import           | 8.976                                      | 7.749                                                         | 15.8             |
| Export           | 4.404                                      | 6.645                                                         | -33.7            |
| Consumption      | 137.848                                    | 123.805                                                       | 11.5             |

(c): The Ministry of Coal has launched "Mission Coking Coal" to enhance domestic coking coal production and reduce import of coking coal, with an objective to prepare roadmap  to  augment  domestic  coking  coal  production.  The  Government  has formulated the following strategies under Mission Coking Coal to reduce import of coking coal in country-

- Increase in domestic coking coal blending for steel making from present 10% to 30%.
- Enhancement of coking coal production to 140 MT by FY2030.
- Revenue Sharing Model: CIL  has  offered  eleven  discontinued  coking  coal mines on an innovative model of revenue sharing to the private sector.
- Auction of Coking Coal Blocks: Ministry of Coal has auctioned 16 coking coal blocks during the last four years.
- Enhance coking coal washing capacity by FY2030: Coal India Limited has commissioned  3  washeries  based  on  new  technology  in  last  7  years  and planned to set up 8 washeries by FY2030.
- To enhance utilisation of indigenous coking coal, some steel companies are considering installation of stamp charged coke oven batteries.

ii . Supply of coal to Steel Sector through NRS Linkage Auction route: The tenure of coking coal linkages in the NRS linkage auction has been revised for a period up to 30 years.

iii.  A  new  sub-sector  'Steel  using  Coking  coal  through  WDO route' has  been created in March, 2024 under the NRS linkage auctions for increasing the availability of washed coking coal in the country.

(d): Government  has  taken  initiatives  to  support  the  steel  industry's  growing requirement for coal through promoting sustainable practices like adopting advanced clean coal technologies for the beneficiation of coking coal.

In respect of Coal India Ltd. (CIL) all the newly commissioned and planned washeries of CIL are/ shall be equipped with state-of-the-art beneficiation technologies like Heavy Media Cyclone, Teeter bed Separator, Spiral Concentrator, Froth Floatation technology etc.  to  increase  the  efficiency  of  washing  with  an  objective  to  optimize indigenous supply of washed coking coal to steel sector.

All the new washeries are/shall be closed circuit washeries, designed to produce Zero Effluent Discharge to the surroundings.

Additionally, the modernization and renovation of existing aging washeries of Bharat Coking Coal Limited (BCCL) and Central Coalfields Limited (CCL) are underway to enhance operational efficiency and reduce environmental impact.

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