Energy Crisis : Govt should rethink on Coal Process !

India could face battling to ensure coal-fired power plants have enough fuel . A sharp uptick in power demand as the economy recovers from the Covid-19 pandemic coupled with supply issues have led to the current coal shortage. India consumed 124 billion units of power in August 2021 compared to 106 billion units of power in August 2019 which was not impacted by the pandemic. Domestic coal prices in India are largely decided by Coal India. Coal India has kept prices steady over the last year despite global coal prices rising steeply in the same period. Coal accounts for about 70% of India’s electricity generation, and consumption is forecast to rise in the next few years, even as Prime Minister Narendra Modi pushes for a massive increase in renewables. The government is pressing thermal plants with captive coal mines to boost their coal output so that they can meet more of their own demand and is also prioritising coal supplies for thermal power plants with low levels of stock. Many non-power consumers of coal, and import-based power plants have curtailed production due to high foreign prices. While large scale outages like those in China seem unlikely in the immediate future, some pockets of the country might face power outages.