India’s coal imports declined 12.08 per cent to 18.26 million tonnes (MT) in August this year over the corresponding month of the previous fiscal. The country’s import of fossil fuel stood at 20.77 MT in August last year.
Overall coal imports during April to August also declined by 10.3 per cent to 103.93 MT, over 115.93 MT in the year-ago period, according to data compiled by mjunction services ltd.
Of the total imports in August, non-coking coal import was at 10.52 MT as against 13.85 MT a year ago. Coking coal import was at 4.62 MT, same as the volume reported in August of FY23.
“There is a substantial drop in non-coking coal import (till August 2023) to the tune of around 20 MT. This has resulted from the increased domestic availability, which has gone up by around 10 per cent. We expect this trend to continue unless there is a sudden spurt in demand and significant softening in seaborne prices,” mjunction MD & CEO Vinaya Varma said.
During the April-August period of the current fiscal, non-coking coal imports were at 62.87 MT, lower than 80.64 MT imported in the year-ago period. Coking coal imports stood at 25.75 MT during April-August 2023-24, higher than 23.16 MT recorded in April-August 2022-23.
Coal India accounts for over 80 per cent of domestic coal output.