Coal India Limited will set up eight new coking coal washeries as part of a Rs. 33 billion (33 bn) capital programme to improve the quality of its coking coal and moderate import dependence. The investment is expected to bring a combined washing capacity of 21.5 million tonnes per year (mn t/yr) and the projects are targeted to be operational by fiscal year 2030. The plan supplements existing washing infrastructure and aims to enhance supply to the domestic steel sector.

The new facilities are additional to the 10 washeries the company already operates, which have a cumulative capacity of 18.35 mn t/yr. Five of the new washeries will be developed by Central Coalfields Limited with an aggregate capacity of 14.5 mn t/yr and three will be located under Bharat Coking Coal Limited with seven mn t/yr. Coal India is also allocating Rs. three bn for renovation and modernisation of existing washeries to ensure optimal utilisation.

The company intends to monetise older, non operative washeries in line with the National Monetisation Policy and has already monetised one washery in Bharat Coking Coal Limited. Two ageing washeries will be renovated and modernised to improve throughput, recovery efficiency and process reliability. In addition, a public private collaboration with Tata Steel Limited will leverage washing capacity and technical expertise to enhance supply of quality coking coal.

Coking coal is a critical input for steel making but domestic coking coal resources are limited and typically carry high ash levels of 25 per cent to 45 per cent, which drives the need for imports. The expansion and modernisation measures are intended to substitute imported material, reduce foreign exchange outgo and support industrial competitiveness. The combined interventions are expected to improve domestic availability of cleaner coking coal over the coming years.