Coal India plans tie-up for overseas mining projects

Coal India Limited (CIL) has received encouraging response from overseas investors for tie-up in overseas mining ventures. CIL has set up a high level committee to examine the responses and take the matter forward.

CIL had floated a global expression of interest (EoI) to select strategic partners in Australia, the US, South Africa and Indonesia for tie-up in coal mining projects abroad, minister of state (independent charge) for coal, Sriprakash Jaiswal, informed the Rajya Sabha in a written reply yesterday.

The minister said there was increasing demand on CIL for coal under the mandate given to it under the New Coal Distribution Policy (NCDP).

Acquisition of high-grade metallurgical and thermal coal abroad and its import to India would supplement the efforts of CIL in augmenting coal supplies for domestic market, he pointed out.

Meanwhile, CIL has agreed to absorb Rs200 crore burden of an estimated additional annual revenue of Rs4,629 crore to be generated from coal price revision, subject to full off-take of production.

Apart from the profit from coal and its related operations like washeries and others, interest on term deposits lying with banks also contribute towards total profit of CIL and its subsidiary companies.

CIL's interest income, however, is estimated to have been reduced to Rs1,718 crore in 2009-10 from around Rs2,241 crore during 2008-09, mainly because of significant reduction in the rates of interest on term deposits, the minister said.