Coal Ministry puts 25 blocks on offer in 16th commercial auction round

New Delhi: The Coal Ministry on Thursday launched the 16th round of commercial coal mine auctions, offering 25 blocks across eight states.

Of these, 21 are fully explored and four are partially explored. The blocks are located in Odisha, Maharashtra, Jharkhand, Chhattisgarh, West Bengal, Bihar, Telangana and Arunachal Pradesh.

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Launching the round, Minister of State for Coal and Mines Satish Chandra Dubey urged investors to participate, saying the mines could attract fresh investment and generate employment.

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147 mines auctioned across 15 rounds

Since commercial coal mining was launched in 2020, the government has successfully auctioned 147 mines across 15 completed rounds, bringing 44 new companies into the sector.

According to the ministry, these mines have the potential to generate approximately Rs 47,500 crore in annual revenue, attract nearly Rs 55,000 crore in capital investment and create around 4.9 lakh jobs across coal-bearing states. These figures represent projected benefits, rather than outcomes already achieved.

The auction framework permits coal sales without end-use restrictions and allows 100 percent foreign direct investment through the automatic route. It also provides for low upfront payments that can be adjusted against future revenue share, the ministry said.

Captive and commercial output reaches 210.46 MT

Coal production from captive and commercial mines reached 210.46 million tonnes (MT) in FY26, up 10.22 percent from 190.95 MT in the previous financial year, according to official data.

During FY26, 12 captive and commercial blocks received Mine Opening Permission, adding more than 86 MT of annual production capacity to the operational mining base.

Output from captive and commercial mines has risen from 115.78 MT in FY23 to 147.11 MT in FY24, followed by further increases in FY25 and FY26.

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