Coal India Ltd (CIL) on Monday said a rake consisting of around 4,000 tonnes of coal left for Bangladesh last week, the first after the state-owned company allowed exports of its dry fuel procured by domestic buyers under e-auction windows last month.

“In less than a month of Coal India Ltd tweaking its e-auction coal sale policy lifting the restriction on export of its coal procured by domestic coal purchasers under two e-auction windows, the first coal laden rake left for Bangladesh on July 2,” the coal behemoth said in a statement.

One rake of coal comprises around 4,000 tonnes. This is for the first time coal was exported after the policy amendment. The destination of below 2,200 gross calorific value coal purchased under spot e-auction from Dahibari siding of Bharat Coking Coal Ltd (BCCL), the Jharkhand-based coal producing subsidiary of CIL is Rampal Power Station, Khulna, Bangladesh, the statement said. This falls under the Maitree Super Thermal Power Project, a joint venture between power major NTPC Ltd and the Bangladesh Power Development Board.

The Bangladesh-bound coal left the Indian shore from Syama Prasad Mookerjee Port, Kolkata, the sea route that connects India and Bangladesh. Effective June 8, the Maharatna coal miner amended its e-auction sale policy allowing across-the-border sales of coal bought under spot e-auction and special spot e-auction by domestic coal purchasers including traders. This paved the way for coal exports. Both types of auctions are meant for all categories of Indian coal buyers and traders. Special spot e-auction though offers extended time for lifting coal.

For the comparable period last year, the add-on was 16 per cent under spot e-auction, the public sector undertaking said. CIL accounts for over 80 per cent of the total domestic coal output.

News Source : Business Line