Singareni Collieries Company Limited will prioritise coal supplies to Telangana GENCO’s thermal power plants, targeting daily deliveries of 75,000 tonnes as electricity demand is expected to rise in the coming days, according to officials quoted by Telangana Today.
The supply plan includes transporting at least 16,000 tonnes of coal every day from Singareni’s Naini coal mine in Odisha to the Yadadri Thermal Power Plant in Telangana. Singareni officials said arrangements were being made to begin this movement by the end of November.
Singareni CMD Buddhaprakash Jyoti instructed the company’s directors and area general managers to give top priority to coal transportation for Telangana GENCO’s thermal power stations. He said supplies to power plants in other States should be considered only after Telangana GENCO’s requirements were met.
Jyoti said Telangana GENCO was receiving more coal this year than it had received during the previous three to four years. Singareni was also prepared to supply additional coal within its capacity if the State’s electricity requirements increased, he said.
The Naini mine has been set a production target of around 20,000 tonnes of coal per day and currently holds a stock of 3 lakh tonnes, Jyoti said. The mine’s output is therefore expected to support the additional movement planned for Yadadri, subject to transport arrangements and GENCO’s ability to receive the fuel.
Telangana GENCO CMD Dr Harish said local transportation issues had caused delays in moving coal from Naini. Plans were in place to transport 16,000 tonnes per day from the end of the month, he said. Measures were also being taken to improve road transportation between the mine and the nearest railway siding.
The coal movement will require coordination between the mine, road transport operators, railway facilities and the Yadadri plant. The transport link is significant because the planned quantity depends not only on production and stock at Naini, but also on the ability to move coal efficiently to the rail network and then onward to the thermal station.
Telangana Today reported that the Naini general manager said several private companies and power-generation companies in Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Maharashtra and Tamil Nadu had expressed interest in procuring coal from the mine. Singareni’s decision to prioritise Telangana GENCO could therefore determine how much of the mine’s available production is directed to the State’s thermal plants.
The company’s immediate next step is to improve transportation from Naini to the nearest railway siding and begin the planned movement of 16,000 tonnes a day to Yadadri by the end of the month.
