NTPC, the power giant, announced the commencement of commercial operations at the Talaipalli coal mining project in Chhattisgarh's Raigarh district. Situated in the Mand-Raigarh Coalfields near Talaipalli village in the Gahrghoda block of Raigarh district, the Talaipalli coal mine is a combination of open-pit and underground mining. The Ministry of Mines allocated the Talaipalli coal block to NTPC for developing a captive coal mine to supply its Lara Super Thermal Power Plant, located 65 km away in the same district.

NTPC stated in a regulatory filing, "We wish to inform that based on achievement of approved norms and due approvals, Talaipalli Coal Mining Project is declared on commercial operation with effect from 00:00 hours of 01.10.2023."

This coal block contains estimated mineable reserves of around 843.68 million tonnes (Mt). The project aims to produce up to 18.72 million tonnes per annum (Mtpa) of coal over an expected mine life of 52 years.

Initial mining operations at Talaipalli began in October 2019, resulting in a production of only 0.25Mt of coal as of July 2020.

The Talaipalli coal mine will employ open-cut mining initially, transitioning to underground mining after 20 years of operation. The open-cut operation is anticipated to yield 18 Mtpa, while underground operations will produce approximately 0.72 Mtpa.

In November of the previous year, NTPC dispatched the first coal rake from the captive Talaipalli coal mines to the Lara Super Thermal Power Project in Chhattisgarh.