CIL warned govt of coal shortage in February, documents show

Coal India's warned the adviser to the federal power ministry in February of an impending fuel shortage as utilities tapped inventories and curbed purchases despite rising coal-fired power output, documents reviewed by Reuters show. India, which has the world's fourth largest coal reserves, is facing a shortage of the fuel and has urged utilities to import coal as supplies at several plants run low. State-run Coal India told the Central Electricity Authority (CEA) that it was "evident that a crisis is arising" unless immediate action was taken to increase supply to power plants, according to a February 4 letter reviewed by Reuters.