New Delhi: In a bid to boost production and ensure unhindered power supply, state-run Coal India has decided to open one of the biggest mines in Odisha this year, news agency Reuters reported. The Power Ministry announced last month that India's peak power demand touched an all-time high of 207,111 MW, among nationwide reports of power outages, as many parts of the country experienced sweltering heatwave with temperatures as high as 48 degrees Celsius.
According to the report by Reuters, Coal India, which accounts for 80% of India's domestic output, plans to produce 700 million tonnes of coal in 2022 and aims to hit annual output of 1 billion tonnes by 2025.
Vinayak Jamwal, spokesman for Coal India unit Mahanadi Coalfields (MCL), said that the Siarmal mine in eastern Odisha will gradually produce an output of 50 million tonnes in about five to seven years.
The Siarmal mine is an open mine in a partly forested area, Jamwal said, adding that the work for the infrastructure is underway.
He further added that the production will start in the October to December quarter at the rate of about 2 to 5 million tonnes every year, Reuters reported.
The country also plans to reopen closed mines which may impact India’s emission targets. The largest mine in India, the Gerva mine, aims to produce 52 million tonnes a year. However, no Indian mine has produced over 50 million tonnes of coal in a year, Reuters reported.
According to the news agency, officials said that Coal India is planning to open two more mines that will have a combined capacity of 7 million tonnes per year in the financial year to March 2023.
Notably, India has also reiterated that it plans to boost its power output from renewable resources and according to the report, there are plans to install 450 gigawatts (GW) of renewable energy by 2030.
India now has a total electricity generation capacity of 401 GW, of which 111.4 GW is renewable power.