New Delhi: India’s first coal exchange will be launched soon, Union Coal and Mines Minister G. Kishan Reddy said on Monday.
“We are in the process. We are discussing regarding coal exchange. We took a meeting only last week. In a short time we will come up with it,” he said on the sidelines of a stakeholder consultation on mine developers and operators and star rating for mines.
Reddy said the exchange will help in providing a larger market for the commodity and bring a transparent benchmark price for it.
in August, peppermint It was reported that the Center is considering creating a new, independent regulator for the exchange.
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An independent regulator with regional expertise will be crucial in providing fairness and transparency in the operations of the exchange, especially after the market is opened up to private players for commercial mining in 2020.
Commercial players are expected to be the major suppliers on the exchange, with public sector mining company Coal India Ltd.
A draft Cabinet note has already been circulated for inter-ministerial consultations. However, given the ongoing deliberations on the need for a new regulator, the Cabinet note has not yet been finalized and sent to the Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA).
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The Coal Exchange will be a platform for buyers and sellers of the mineral where buyers will have options in terms of grade and location of coal.
After meeting the long-term linkage commitments, a large portion of the surplus coal of Coal India and its subsidiaries is likely to be traded on the exchange, which could amount to about 200 million tonnes annually.
Commercial miners are expected to be the major sellers on the exchange.
The coal swap plan comes against the backdrop of unprecedented growth in India’s coal production but declining demand.
In the last fiscal year, India’s coal production touched a new high of 997.4 million tonnes, an increase of 11.67% from FY23. For this year (FY25), the Center has set a target of 1.08 billion tonnes.
Coal India alone produced 773.6 million tonnes of coal in FY24, up 10% from FY23.
In another major development, the Coal Ministry on Monday opened bids for the 10th round of commercial coal mines auction and the second attempt for the ninth and eighth rounds. Out of the 61 coal mines proposed in the 10th round, 43 bids have been received for 16 coal mines.
