KOLKATA (miningweekly.com) – Producer Coal India Limited (CIL) notched up production of 462.5-million tonnes during the 2013/14 financial year, falling short of its target by 19.5-million tonnes.

Despite missing its target, the coal miner was able to achieve a production growth of 2.3% compared with the production level achieved in 2012/13, and CIL chairperson S Narsing Rao said that the miner would achieve production of 500-million tonnes during 2014/15.

According to a memorandum of understanding signed between CIL and the Coal Ministry, laying down performance parameters during the current fiscal, the miner had committed to achieving production of 507-million tonnes of coal during 2014/15.

In  2012/13, the company produced 452.5-million tonnes of coal, which was also short of the target of 464-million tonnes.

Among the reasons cited for missing the production target, CIL cited Cyclone Phalin, which hit India’s east coast last year, and disruptions to law and order by left wing extremists in the eastern and central provinces.

Ministry officials, however, were cautious over the miner achieving the half-billion tonnes of coal production mark during the current year, saying that to increase production growth to 6.3% after notching up a growth rate of only 2.3%, would not be realistic.

Ministry officials pointed out several infrastructural impediments, many of them beyond the miner's control, which could impact ramping up coal production.

For example, the government-owned and operated Indian Railways this week informed the market that it would not be able to supply rail linkages from CIL pitheads to captive power plants operated by various heavy manufacturing units.

The shortage of railway wagons would affect coal supplies to over 70% of the total 50 000 MW of installed captive power generating capacity in the country. This, in turn, could lead to a drop in the offtake of coal from the pitheads and lower planned production of mines as a fallout, the officials said.

Simultaneously, with a lame-duck government in place ahead of Indian national elections starting this month, it was unlikely that any production or logistics issues in the coal mining sector would get the attention required nor could any policy initiatives be expected from the Ministry, officials added.

With the national elections spread out over two months and, thereafter, the necessity to form a government, governmental decision-making pertaining to coal mining could only be expected four to five months from now, they said.