As part of its efforts towards strengthening evacuation infrastructure, Coal India has invested in the construction of new rail lines to ensure seamless coal transportation, particularly from mines having significant growth potential, Coal India Chairman & Managing Director, PM Prasad, told shareholders at the Annual General Meeting on Wednesday.

Sharing the benefits of the performance, CIL paid a total interim dividend of Rs 12,479.57 crore during FY23 at Rs 20.25 per share. Importantly, the board has recommended a final dividend of Rs 4.00 per share for FY23.

Prasad said: “The construction of the Shivpur-Kathautia new railway line (49.09 km) and capacity enhancement works on the Jharsuguda-Barpali-Sardega (52.41 km) and Tori-Shivpur (44.37 km) railway lines were among the main accomplishments of the fiscal year 2022-2023. In addition, Coal India has inaugurated Mahanadi East Coast Railway Ltd’s Angul-Balram rail link project (14.22 km), increasing the rail evacuation capacity from the MCL’s Talcher coalfields by approximately 15 MTPA.

Also read: CIL capacity expansion up 8.5 per cent at Rs 4,700 crore in April-July FY 2024

Further, during FY23, CIL continued to expand its mining and operational capabilities, while remaining committed to environmental compliances and sustainable practices.

“We issued work orders for nine MDO — mine development and operator — projects, collectively targeting a capacity of 127 mt per year. Of these, three projects have commenced mining operations. Evaluation of bids is ongoing for two projects, while the tendering process is in progress for four projects. Additionally, 24 coal mining projects with a total capacity of 140.3 MT/Y were approved during the fiscal,” he shared.

As part of its focused efforts on underground (UG) mining, Coal India has identified 30 discontinued mines for operationalisation, which hold an estimated mineable reserve of approximately 600 mt.

To enhance underground mechanisation, the company commissioned five Continuous Miners during FY23, which were deployed in ECL, WCL and SECL. “We have also successfully obtained environmental clearances for 40 proposals, resulting in an incremental capacity of 87.32 mt per year. Additionally, forestry clearances were secured for seven proposals covering 1,920.15 hectares and final approval was granted for seven proposals covering 885.86 hectares,” he said.

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