The country’s coal import rose by 4.2 per cent to 162.45 million tonnes (mt) in the April-October period of the current financial year compared to 155.87 mt in the year-ago period.

Coal imports in October dropped by 14.4 per cent to 21.84 mt compared to 25.54 mt in the corresponding month of the previous fiscal, according to data compiled by mjunction services, a B2B e-commerce platform.

Of the total imports in October, non-coking coal imports stood at 13.49 mt against 18.82 mt imported in October last fiscal. Coking coal imports stood at 4.45 mt, against 4.31 mt imported in October last financial year.

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In September, non-coking coal imports were 13.24 mt and coking coal at 3.39 mt.

“There was a modest increase (month-on-month) in non-coking coal volumes in October as buyers took fresh positions during the festive month, and ahead of the winter season. Going forward, demand is likely to be moderate due to the anticipated growth in domestic supply during the fourth quarter (Q4),” mjunction MD & CEO Vinaya Varma said.

Coal and Mines Minister G Kishan Reddy had recently urged the steel sector to reduce dependence on imported coal and make the required changes in technology.

The minister had said that the import of coal should be reduced in a phased manner. The steel industry uses coking coal.

The minister had also expressed hopes that the coal production target of 1,080 million tonnes for the current fiscal year would be met.