In a first,CIL clocks zero per cent production growth

Coal India may have overtaken ONGC to become the most valuable PSU of India in terms of market capitalisation.

Coal India may have overtaken ONGC to become the most valuable PSU of India in terms of market capitalisation,but it has also,for the first time in history,registered a zero percent production growth in 2010-11.

The 2010-11 target was 460.5 million tonnes (MT). We have been able to produce 431.32 MT only, CIL chairman N C Jha said here.

Apart from delay in getting forest clearances,non-completion of some contracts due to litigations and law and order problems in some areas were the other reasons why the production suffered, he added.

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Delayed forest clearances,he said,caused a deficit of 18 MT in 2010-11 production.

Jha further said that the target for 2011-12 has been scaled down to 452 MT.

The CIL Chairman also said,despatches (supply) to consumer companies – mainly the power companies also fell short of the target of 462 MT by about 38 MT and failure on the part of railways to provide required number of rakes was the main reason behind it. We got 178 rakes as against 190 required in April. But there was deficiency on our part to since we couldnt reach coal to some of the rakes, he added.

Saying that 77 percent of the coal production is consumed by power companies,Jha said,as against last years 304 MT supply to these companies,we have set the target of 347 MT for them this year.

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Stressing the need to connect to coalfields by railways,Jha named five coalfields in Jharkhand,Orissa and Chhattisgarh where it was needed the most.