Soon, private players are going to end Coal India’s monopoly in the market

Soon, private players are going to end Coal India’s monopoly in the market

PW Bureau

Coal India had so far been the only domestic supplier of the fossil fuel for the last four decades since the mining sector was nationalised in the 1940s

New Delhi: For the first time after a gap of five-six years, eight million tonnes of coal mined by private players will be sold in the open market, dealing a blow to the monopoly enjoyed by Asia's largest coal producer, Coal India Ltd (CIL). Coal India had so far been the only domestic supplier of the fossil fuel for the last four decades since the mining sector was nationalised in the 1940s.

Now, the last date for submitting technical bids is January 2, 2019, while price-based bidding for block auction has been moved to January 14-January 27, 2019.

The process had been in the pipeline since the beginning of this year and on December 19, iron and steel, captive power plants and cement plants were supposed to submit technical bids for 18 coal blocks from which they could sell 25 percent of their total production in the market at CIL prices.

The deadline for the various stages of the auction has, however, been extended for the second time by the government following requests from potential bidders. Now, the last date for submitting technical bids is January 2, 2019, while price-based bidding for block auction has been moved to January 14-January 27, 2019.

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