India: Coal India records yearly drop in coal production, dispatch for Sept'24

Coal India Limited (CIL), a Maharatna company and the largest coal-producing entity in the world has released its provisional production and offtake performance data for September 2024.

Production highlights

For September 2024, CIL recorded a total coal production of 50.9 million tonnes (mnt), reflecting a marginal decrease compared to the same period in the previous year. This decline can be attributed to operational challenges faced by certain subsidiaries. Despite this monthly drop, cumulative production from April to September 2024 stood at 341.3 mnt, marking a 2.5% increase compared to the same period in 2023.

Offtake performance

Coal offtake, which indicates the market demand and supply efficiency, saw a decrease in September 2024. Total coal dispatches for the month amounted to 54.4 mnt, which is a marginal drop compared to September 2023. This is reflective of ongoing logistical and demand-side hurdles that continue to impact the coal industry.

For the period from April to September 2024, the cumulative offtake reached 366.6 mnt, registering a 1.7% y-o-y growth. This trend reflects CIL's continued efforts to manage supply chain complexities while fulfilling the energy needs of key sectors such as power, steel, and cement.

Annual performance target

CIL has set an ambitious coal production target of 838 mnt for the financial year 2024-25 (FY'24-25). To meet this target, CIL will need to significantly increase production in the second half of the year (H2 2024), especially as the monsoon typically hampers coal production in the earlier months.