Commercial coal mining auctions launched

The prime minister has formally launched the auction for 41 coal mines for commercial mining as part of the Atmanirbhar Bharat Abhiyan. The Ministry of Coal has notified the tender detailing the blocks to be awarded under the auction. Of the total 41 mines on offer, 11 are in Madhya Pradesh, nine each in Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand and Odisha, and three in Maharashtra. The mines are expected to reach peak production of 225 mt, and produce around 15 per cent of India’s coal output by 2025-26. The auction is expected to attract investments worth Rs 330 billion with private miners sharing revenues with the government. The bidders will be required to bid for a percentage share of the revenue payable to the state government from the production and sale of mined coal. The price of coal extracted will be determined through the National Coal Index which comprises market-linked benchmarks. The last date for purchase of tender documents is August 14, 2020 and the bids can be submitted till August 18, 2020.