Govt to rely on state miners to meet 2020 coal target: Goyal

■ Rules out new measures to entice cash-strapped private companies

THE country will meet its target of doubling coal production by 2020 without the help of private miners, coal and power minister Piyush Goyal said, ruling out new measures to entice cash-strapped companies to begin mining the commodity.

India wants to produce 1.5 billion tonne of coal by 2020 to power its economy and reduce imports. State-owned Coal India (CIL), the world's largest coal miner, has raised production in line with reaching a target of 1 billion tonne a year within four years and the government wants private miners to produce much of the remainder.

But only a few companies that won the right to mine coal for their power plants last year have started production as they struggle to recover their costs, while the ministry this month delayed plans to open up commercial mining to private firms because of weak demand and depressed coal prices.

Goyal told Reuters that stateowned companies including power producer NTPC, Steel Authority of India and National Aluminium Co would instead pick up the slack by expanding their own mining operations.

“That target I will meet even if (private companies) don't come in,” he said in a interview on March 23. “In the days to come I'll be auctioning out more mines. I've already got my plans in place.”

NTPC is on course to produce 300 million tonne alone by 2020, said Goyal, a for mer investment banker.

India's success in boosting its coal output after years of missed production targets has been central to Prime Minister Narendra Modi's energy policy.

Despite environmental worries, The country plans to continue to depend on bur ning coal to provide power for its 1.3 billion people, some 300 million of whom still lack access to electricity.

The gover nment last year auctioned off captive mines, sites already near end-users such as power plants, to private fir ms such as Hindalco Industries and Adani Power.

But most companies have not begun mining and have war ned that rules prohibiting them from passing on rising costs to endusers make it tough to recover their costs after aggressive bidding during the auctions.

Goyal, however, said he would stick with the current system.

“These coal mines were given out by a system where the price benefit would go out to the people of India. It was a transparent bid by independent people without any compulsion to bid any price,” he said. “They bid and they got it.”

While Indian demand for coal has been lower-than-expected, Goyal said a major reform of indebted electricity distributors would soon free these utilities to start buying more power, boosting demand for coal.

Total investment into India's energy sector reached around $50 billion this financial year, he said, with roughly the same level expected next year as the government tenders new wind and solar projects and upgrades transmission lines.

That target (producing 1.5 billion tonne of coal by 2020) I will meet even if (private companies) don’t come in. In the days to come, I will be auctioning out more mines. I’ve already got my plans in place.

PIYUSH GOYAL,

coal and power minister