Coal India

Overview

Coal India Limited (CIL) is an Indian state-owned coal mining and refining corporation headquartered in Kolkata, West Bengal. It is one of the largest coal producing companies in the world and is a Maharatna public sector undertaking under the administrative control of the Ministry of Coal, Government of India. Coal India accounts for the majority of coal output in India and supplies the bulk of the feedstock used by the country's thermal power generation sector.

Key facts

Background

The coal industry in India was nationalised in two phases at the beginning of the 1970s. Coking coal mines were nationalised in 1971–72 and non-coking coal mines in 1973, bringing private collieries under government control. Coal India Limited was incorporated in 1975 as a holding company to manage these nationalised assets and to coordinate planning, production and distribution of coal across the country.

Structure

Coal India operates through several wholly owned subsidiaries, each responsible for mining operations in particular coalfield regions, along with a planning and design arm. The principal subsidiaries include:

• Eastern Coalfields Limited (ECL) — headquartered at Sanctoria, West Bengal.
• Bharat Coking Coal Limited (BCCL) — headquartered at Dhanbad, Jharkhand.
• Central Coalfields Limited (CCL) — headquartered at Ranchi, Jharkhand.
• Northern Coalfields Limited (NCL) — headquartered at Singrauli, Madhya Pradesh.
• Western Coalfields Limited (WCL) — headquartered at Nagpur, Maharashtra.
• South Eastern Coalfields Limited (SECL) — headquartered at Bilaspur, Chhattisgarh.
• Mahanadi Coalfields Limited (MCL) — headquartered at Sambalpur, Odisha.
• Central Mine Planning and Design Institute (CMPDI) — headquartered at Ranchi, providing exploration, planning and consultancy services.

The company also has an overseas presence through Coal India Africana Limitada in Mozambique.

Operations

Coal India runs a mix of opencast and underground mines spread across major coalfields in eastern and central India, including those in Jharkhand, West Bengal, Odisha, Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh and Maharashtra. Its principal customers are thermal power utilities, the steel and cement industries, fertiliser manufacturers and a range of smaller industrial consumers. Coal is sold under long-term Fuel Supply Agreements (FSAs) with power producers as well as through e-auctions.

Timeline

• 1971–1973: Nationalisation of coking and non-coking coal mines in India.
• 1975: Coal India Limited incorporated as the holding company for nationalised coal assets.
• 2010: Initial public offering on Indian stock exchanges, in which the Government of India divested a portion of its shareholding.
• 2011: Conferred Maharatna status by the Government of India, granting greater operational and financial autonomy.
• 2020: Commercial coal mining opened to private companies, ending Coal India's monopoly on commercial coal production in the country.

Significance

Coal India is central to India's energy security, as coal continues to be the dominant fuel for electricity generation in the country. Its production levels strongly influence the availability of fuel for the power sector, the pricing of domestic coal, and the trade balance through their effect on coal imports. The company is also a major employer, particularly in the mining belts of Jharkhand, Odisha, Chhattisgarh and West Bengal, where its operations shape regional economies, infrastructure and social welfare programmes.

Related topics

• Ministry of Coal
• Coal mining in India
• Public sector undertakings in India
• Maharatna
• Singareni Collieries Company
• NTPC Limited
• Nationalisation of coal in India

References

• Wikidata entity: Q124976
• Ministry of Coal, Government of India.