JSW Steel has temporarily suspended plans to source coking coal from Mongolia, citing major logistical challenges in transporting the material from the landlocked Central Asian nation to India.

“Mongolia was being explored as an alternative source, but there are a lot of logistics-related issues for transportation. As of now, it is not logistically feasible, and the plan is on hold,” said Jayant Acharya, Joint Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of JSW Steel, during the CII Global Sustainability Summit on Tuesday.

Coking coal is a vital raw material in blast furnace-based steelmaking. Despite being the world’s second-largest steel producer, India relies heavily on imports for its coking coal requirements.

Currently, over 80 to 90 per cent of India’s coking coal needs are met through imports, with Australia serving as the dominant supplier. However, long shipping durations and elevated logistics costs due to the distance from key exporting nations continue to impact Indian steelmakers.

To reduce this reliance and improve price stability, the Indian government has, in recent years, explored import diversification strategies. In January 2025, government officials indicated that discussions were ongoing to assess viable transportation corridors for importing coal from Mongolia.

In the meantime, JSW Steel will continue sourcing coking coal from its existing suppliers to sustain operations.

Alongside import strategies, the government is also promoting the exploration of domestic coking coal reserves and pushing for low-carbon or alternative steelmaking technologies as part of India’s broader decarbonisation agenda.