New Delhi, Jan 14 (PTI) Coal supply by state-run CIL to the power sector declined by 5.3 per cent to 318.04 million tonnes (MT) in the April-December period of the ongoing fiscal.

The state-owned company had supplied 335.92 MT of coal to the power sector in the corresponding period of the previous fiscal, according to official data.

In December 2020, the fuel supply by Coal India (CIL) dropped to 40.25 MT against 43.04 MT in the same month last fiscal year.

The fuel supply by Singareni Collieries Company Ltd (SCCL) to the power sector in the nine-month period dropped to 26.87 MT from 39.32 MT a year ago.

In December 2020, the fuel supply by SCCL declined to 4.50 MT from 4.88 MT in the corresponding month of previous fiscal, it said.

CIL is a major supplier of the dry fuel to the power sector in India.

The government had imposed nationwide lockdown in March last year to contain the spread of COVID-19. Power consumption started declining from March 2020 onwards due to fewer economic activities in the country.

The COVID-19 situation affected power consumption for six months in a row from March to August last year.

CIL, one of the major suppliers of the fossil fuel to the power sector, accounts for over 80 per cent of the domestic coal output. It is eyeing one billion tonne of output by 2023-24.

(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)