With the conclusion of the Union government's first National Monetisation Pipeline (NMP), the Ministry of Coal has emerged as the top-performing ministry, surpassing its four-year target by Rs 630 billion. Against a target of Rs 1.38 trillion between FY22 and FY25, the ministry monetised assets worth Rs 2 trillion—exceeding expectations by 45 per cent.

The Ministry of Road Transport and Highways followed as the second-best performer, although its final figures were pending at the time of reporting.

The NMP, launched in 2021, was India’s first comprehensive attempt to unlock value from underutilised public assets—including roads, airports, coal mines, pipelines, and telecom infrastructure—with a goal of raising Rs 6 trillion in four years. In the Union Budget 2025, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman announced a second monetisation plan targeting Rs 10 trillion between 2025 and 2030, with details being finalised by NITI Aayog.

The Ministry of Coal’s exceptional performance was driven by commercial coal mine auctions, Mine Developer and Operator (MDO) projects, and revenue-sharing models with Coal India Ltd (CIL) and its subsidiaries. These strategies not only attracted private investment but also boosted long-term revenue generation.

A major milestone was reached in March 2025, when Bharat Coking Coal Ltd (BCCL), a CIL subsidiary, became the first entity in India to monetise a coal washery—the 2 million tonne per annum Dugda facility in Bokaro, Jharkhand.

“These outcomes reflect the ministry’s commitment to modernising India’s coal sector,” said a senior official. “We are focused on optimising asset use, expanding washing capacity, and reducing import dependency by involving private expertise.”

Since the launch of commercial coal mining in 2020, 125 mines have been auctioned across 11 rounds, with a cumulative production capacity of over 273 million tonnes per annum.

Despite its strong overall performance, the ministry did miss its FY25 monetisation target of Rs 547.22 billion, achieving Rs 468.73 billion—86 per cent of the annual goal. Officials attributed this shortfall to project delays and deferred proposals that will likely materialise in the following fiscal year.