Why does the government propose to invest a huge sum of Rs.1 trillion in coal sector and what does that mean for CIL and NTPC?

As part of reviving the resources sector in India, the government is planning to invest more than Rs 1 lakh crore in next 4 years to expand India’s coal production and improve coal infrastructure facilities for off-take and transportation. The idea is reduce the dependence on imported coal when there are abundant reserves available domestically. Coal India has been allocated 60 new blocks and has a target of producing 1 billion tonnes of coal in FY24. In addition, to cater to the huge demand for coal, especially from the thermal power plants, the government has also recently announced commercial coal mining terms and conditions. India has been resorting to coal imports to the tune of 240 MT annually despite having the world’s largest coal reserves. While CIL will benefit from better output and margins, companies like NTPC will benefit from assured supplies domestically.