Coal India's sales rise for first time in six months on gas crunch, summer demand
Coal India's sales in March grew for the first time in six months, the company said on Wednesday, indicating a ramp-up in coal stocks ahead of peak summer amid a shortfall in gas supply due to the US-Israeli war against Iran.
Coal India's offtake, or sales to customers, rose 0.7% to 69.5 million tons in March, despite a 1.5% drop in its provisional output to 84.5 million tons, the company said in a stock exchange filing.
The State-run company accounts for over 80% of the country's production and is the world's largest coal miner by output.
Coal India's offtake fell for six consecutive months after a 7.6% jump in August, boosting inventory levels at power plants as temperate weather dented India's power demand in 2025.
The higher stocks have kept import demand subdued despite the peak summer season approaching, said Vasudev Pamnani, director at Gujarat-based coal trader iEnergy Natural Resources.
Domestic coal remained relatively more attractive in certain segments, he said, adding that disruptions in liquefied natural gas supply and reduced gas-based power generation are expected to boost reliance on coal for power generation.
India, which relies on coal for nearly 75% of its power generation, is expected to lean more on the polluting fuel during the summer due to the gas shortage, Reuters reported in March.
Although gas accounts for only around 2% of India's total power generation, the South Asian country uses about 8 GW to 10 GW of gas power during peak-demand periods or heatwaves.
In the absence of gas, India has asked its coal plants to run at maximum capacity and avoid planned outages, and has also asked industries to produce their own power through their captive generation plants to free up supplies for households.
India is set to experience a hotter-than-normal summer this year, with heat wave days in May expected to exceed the seasonal average.
Article Enquiry
Email Article
Save Article
Feedback
To advertise email advertising@creamermedia.co.za or click here
Research Reports
Projects
Latest Multimedia
Latest News
Showroom
For over 15 years, Lilak Aluminium, a trusted leader in architectural extrusion supply, has delivered excellence to businesses like yours.
VISIT SHOWROOM
ISO-certified Condra manufactures overhead cranes, portal cranes, cantilever cranes and crane components: hoists, drives, end-carriages, brakes and...
VISIT SHOWROOM
Press Office
Announcements
What's On
Subscribe to improve your user experience...
Option 1 (equivalent of R125 a month):
Receive a weekly copy of Creamer Media's Engineering News & Mining Weekly magazine
(print copy for those in South Africa and e-magazine for those outside of South Africa)
Receive daily email newsletters
Access to full search results
Access archive of magazine back copies
Access to Projects in Progress
Access to ONE Research Report of your choice in PDF format
Option 2 (equivalent of R375 a month):
All benefits from Option 1
PLUS
Access to Creamer Media's Research Channel Africa for ALL Research Reports, in PDF format, on various industrial and mining sectors
including Electricity; Water; Energy Transition; Hydrogen; Roads, Rail and Ports; Coal; Gold; Platinum; Battery Metals; etc.
Already a subscriber?
Forgotten your password?
Receive weekly copy of Creamer Media's Engineering News & Mining Weekly magazine (print copy for those in South Africa and e-magazine for those outside of South Africa)
➕
Recieve daily email newsletters
➕
Access to full search results
➕
Access archive of magazine back copies
➕
Access to Projects in Progress
➕
Access to ONE Research Report of your choice in PDF format
RESEARCH CHANNEL AFRICA
R4500 (equivalent of R375 a month)
SUBSCRIBEAll benefits from Option 1
➕
Access to Creamer Media's Research Channel Africa for ALL Research Reports on various industrial and mining sectors, in PDF format, including on:
Electricity
➕
Water
➕
Energy Transition
➕
Hydrogen
➕
Roads, Rail and Ports
➕
Coal
➕
Gold
➕
Platinum
➕
Battery Metals
➕
etc.
Receive all benefits from Option 1 or Option 2 delivered to numerous people at your company
➕
Multiple User names and Passwords for simultaneous log-ins
➕
Intranet integration access to all in your organisation
