India’s coal import declined 1.7 per cent to 263.56 million tonnes in the 2024-25 financial year.
The country’s coal import was 268.24 million tonnes (MT) in 2023-24.
During 2024-25, non-coking coal import was 167.10 MT, lower than 175.96 MT imported in the previous year. Coking coal imports was at 54.08 MT in 2024-25 as against 57.22 MT in 2023-24.
According to data compiled by mjunction services ltd — a B2B e-commerce platform — coal import in March also declined to 22.79 MT over 23.96 MT in the year-ago period.
Of the total imports in March, non-coking coal imports stood at 14.84 MT, against 15.33 MT imported in the same month last year. Coking coal import volume was 4.41 MT, against 5.34 MT imported in March 2024.
mjunction MD & CEO Vinaya Varma said, “There was a drop in import volume in March (and in 2024-25), which was in line with market expectation. As the domestic market remains replete with high stockpile (of non-coking coal), we expect the appetite for imports to remain subdued till demand picks up in peak summer.” The cumulative coal production in 2024-25 crossed the one billion tonne-mark, reaching 1,047.57 MT (provisional), compared to 997.83 MT in 2023-24, recording a growth of 4.99 per cent.
The coal ministry said it remains committed to fostering self-reliance, reducing import dependency, and driving sustainable mining practices to bolster the nation’s energy security and economic resilience.