NEW DELHI: The coal ministry has asked its power counterpart to instruct all electricity generation plants to continue receiving the dry fuel as there is sufficient stock available. This request comes in the wake of reports suggesting a significant drop in power demand due to the nationwide lockdown in view of Covid-19.
"The coal ministry has written to the power ministry asking it to instruct all power plants not to stop the receipt of coal as there was ample coal stock," a source on the condition of anonymity said adding that the supply of coal is swift as there is zero congestion on railway tracks.
The source added that on the back of sufficient output in the last few months, state-owned CIL is supplying sufficient quantity of coal to power plants which at present have stock of 28- days. Coal India Ltd (CIL) produced 602.14 million tonnes of dry fuel during 2019-20 fiscal.
The miner had produced 606.89 million tonnes of coal in 2018-19. An official said that the company achieved 91 per cent of its 660 million tonnes production target for FY'20. The PSU which accounts for over 80 per cent of domestic coal output is a major supplier to the power sector.
According to power ministry data, India's power demand fell over 25 per cent to 125.81 GW on April 2. The demand was down mainly due to lower requirements from industry and state power distribution companies (discoms) across the country due to the lockdown imposed to contain the spread of corona virus.
The coronavirus pandemic has wreaked havoc across the world, including India. In India, the total number of cases of coronavirus infections stand at 5,194 and the death toll at 149.