By Sethuraman N R

NEW DELHI- Indian state government-run Odisha Coal and Power Ltd (OCPL) is looking to sell surplus coal from its mine in eastern India at a discount, an auction document showed, indicating lower demand for the fuel in the country.

OCPL will auction 3 million tons of its surplus coal via online auctions on Oct. 4 for power plants at a 15 percent  discount to the base price on the national coal index, according to an auction advertisement in the Times of India newspaper on Sunday.

India’s total domestic coal production rose 7.12 percent  from a year ago to reach 370 million metric tons between April 1 to Aug. 25, according to coal ministry data.

The sale indicates high supply and reduced demand, said Riya Vyas, senior analyst at iEnergy Natural Resources Ltd.

“At the moment, electricity demand from coal-fired power plants is limited, while domestic production has increased as the rains subside,” Vyas said, referring to the ending of the annual monsoon.

The country’s coal production in the last fiscal year to March 31 rose to a record 997.828 million tons, a 12 percent  rise from a year ago. More than 75 percent  of India’s power generation was from coal in 2023.

India imported 176 million tons of thermal coal in 2023, driven mainly by power plants.

India’s thermal coal imports are expected to fall this year for the first time since the COVID-19 pandemic due to increasing domestic output and record high inventories. -Reuters