CIL may stop supply to NTPC plants

Eastern Coalfields Ltd, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Coal India Ltd (CIL), is threatening to stop supplies of nearly 14.5 million tonnes of coal to NTPC power plants at Farakka (2,100 MW) in West Bengal and Kahalgaon (1,340 MW) in Bihar, for non-payment of dues. NTPC deducted over Rs 1,000 crore worth of payments, payable to the ailing CIL subsidiary, against supplies during the past six months, citing quality issues. Though the coal produced from the mine are graded between G-10 and G-13 in terms of heat value, NTPC claimed that the supplies were of much inferior quality and paid Eastern Coalfields at the rate of the lowest rank coal (G-17The company stopped the supply of coal for non-payment of dues in April this year. After intervention of the Coal Ministry its coal supplies were “partially resumed”.