New Delhi: The government on Thursday said the supply of coal to thermal power plants (TPPs) has been rising consistently, which is evident from the rise in stock at power plants end. The average rise during the last one week is more than two lakh tonnes per day and it assumes significance in the wake of country's power plants facing fuel shortages.
"Coal supply to power plants has indicated steady increase for the last many days," the coal ministry said in a statement. Supplies to TPPs have been increasing consistently "which is evident from the rise in stock at the power plant end which has started rising and average increase during last one week is more than two lakh tonnes per day," it added.
As per Central Electricity Authority (CEA) report, the coal stock with power plants stood at 9.028 million tonnes (MT) as on October 26, 2021. With daily increase in coal stock for the last nine days, five days' stock is available at the end of the thermal power plants. In around a week's time, it is likely to reach six days' buffer stock.
Coal consumed on daily basis by the TPPs is replenished by coal companies. Earlier this month, Coal Minister Pralhad Joshi held a virtual meeting with Power Minister R K Singh and Minister of Railways Ashwini Vaishnaw along with senior officers of the respective ministries, CMDs and officials of the coal companies to discuss and review the steps necessary to further improve coal stock at the power plants end.
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It was agreed in the meeting that supply to power plants will be around two million tonnes per day from all the sources i.e Coal India Ltd, Singareni Collieries Ltd and captive mines. The overall coal supply to power sector has been consistently more than 2.1 million tonnes for the last one week.
On Tuesday, Joshi reviewed the coal production and stressed on continuing the momentum to dispatch maximum supply of the dry fuel to thermal power plants. The Union power minister on Monday exuded confidence that there will be no power shortage in the country amid the ongoing low coal stocks at power plants and stressed on timely payments by distribution companies to the plants for electricity supplied to them.
After the virtual launch of the green day market for sale of renewable energy on exchanges, Singh assured, "There won't be any back down...There was no (power) outage yesterday. There was no (power shortage) and it did not happen even before. If there is some outage, then that is because of our own (states') constraints."
The minister informed that power plants in the country have more than 8 million tonnes of coal at present.
PTI
