India produced around 1,042.90 million tonnes of coal on a provisional basis during calendar year 2025, from January to December, slightly higher than the 1,039.62 million tonnes recorded in the same period a year earlier, marking a growth of about 0.23 per cent, according to the Ministry of Coal.

Coal supply during the year stood at nearly 1,016.14 million tonnes on a provisional basis, compared with 1,013.59 million tonnes supplied in the previous year, reflecting an increase of around 0.25 per cent. In its annual report released on Monday, the ministry said coal availability to consumers remained adequate and uninterrupted throughout the year, with no instances of shortages reported across the country.

With support from Indian Railways, coal stocks at domestic coal-based thermal power plants reached 50.31 million tonnes as of 31 December 2025, about 17.42 per cent higher than the level recorded on the same date last year. At the prevailing rate of consumption, these stocks are sufficient to meet power plant requirements for roughly 21 days, the ministry said.

Coal stock levels at thermal power plants crossed the 50 million tonne mark on 22 November 2025, nearly 80 days earlier than in the previous financial year, when this threshold was achieved on 9 February 2025. The steady supply of domestic coal to the power sector also helped reduce imported coal blending by 54.17 per cent compared with last year.

Coal imports for blending up to December 2025 stood at just 5.5 million tonnes, sharply lower than the 12 million tonnes imported during the same period a year earlier. Imported coal used for blending had earlier peaked at 35 million tonnes in 2022–23, but has since declined due to improved domestic availability.

The report further noted that total coal imports into the country fell by 7.9 per cent in 2024–25 to 243.62 million tonnes, from 264.58 million tonnes in the corresponding period of the previous financial year. This reduction resulted in foreign exchange savings of about $7.93 billion, equivalent to roughly Rs 606.82 billion.

During the current year, coal imports between April and October 2025 stood at 149.80 million tonnes, marginally higher than the 149.23 million tonnes imported in the same period of the previous financial year.