new Delhi Government plans to strengthen rail infrastructure and push for commissioning of 14 critical coal mines rail project For faster transportation of fuel, as higher fuel prices are likely to put pressure on railways to transport domestic coal.
The projects include – Tori-Shivpur railway line (on deposit basis), Jharsuguda-Barpali-Sardega rail link at MCL’s IB-Valley coalfield in Odisha (on deposit basis) and Shivpur-Kathautia railway line (through SPV).
In the meeting held last month under the chairmanship of Coal Secretary AK Jain, the status and progress of these projects were reviewed.
Thermal power generation from imported coal based plants is likely to decline further due to higher fuel prices and will put pressure on railways to transport domestic coal.
“About eight per cent of thermal power generation used to come from imported coal-fired plants, which has come down to three per cent due to high coal prices. This is likely to come down further in future, which will put pressure on railways. Transportation of domestic coal to eliminate/substitute,” Jain said.
According to the minutes of the meeting, this issue is related to the need of energy for the country.
“The cabinet secretary will specifically review the capacity of railways to transport coal as most of the imported coal-based thermal power plants are located further away from the coast,” he said.
The coal handling plants and other first-mile connectivity projects will help in reducing the turnaround time of wagons/rakes, the secretary said, adding that commissioning of these 14 rail projects is crucial for fast and efficient transportation of coal.
Regarding the Tori-Shivpur rail line, it was told during the meeting that the implementation of this project is in full swing and is likely to be completed by March next year.
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