In an aim to shift towards energy self-sufficiency, India the world's third-biggest coal importer is in the process of throwing open commercial coal mining to private firms for the first time in four decades. The Coal Secretary Susheel Kumar has said that the opening up of commercial coal mining to private companies will lead to the competition in the coal sector and reduce power tariff. He also said that commercial coal mining is a very big reform in the coal sector and the idea is to bring in competition for the monopoly coal miner, a public sector company, Coal India.
The Coal Secretary explaining further said that this is the intervention which the government wants to bring in and what they wish to achieve ultimately in the coal sector is to reduce the prices of coal so that their ultimate end-use consumer who is a power consumer gets power at cheaper rates. He also said that the government wants to convey to potential investors that sustainable and efficient mining, not revenue maximization, is the idea behind commercial coal auction.
He added that they hope to achieve through commercial mining is these mines will attract efficient power sector players who will invest in a big way and bring in that efficiency, ultimately reducing the prices. Meanwhile, the government is planning to auction four blocks under commercial mining in the first phase. As per the Coal Mines Special Provision Act of 2015, the government can open up commercial coal mining for private players.
