Vedanta group's Balco inaugurates new coal mine

Bharat Aluminium Company Limited (Balco), a subsidiary of Vedanta Limited, inaugurated its Chotia coal mine on November 3, 2015. The mine was allocated to Balco in February this year after the company emerged as the highest bidder for it in the first phase of coal auction.

Balco has projected three lakh tonnes of coal will be mined during FY 2016 from the Chotia coal mine, which incidentally is the only coal mine of Vedanta group. Balco had bid a price of Rs 3,025 per tonne during the auctions, which is considerably lower than the import price of Rs 4,500 for a similar grade, the company said in a statement on Saturday.

Ramesh Nair, CEO & whole-time director, Balco who inaugurated the mine said on the ocassion: "'Chotia is integral to Balco's strategy. It will add to our coal security by a reasonable margin. Aluminium production is a power intensive process and our captive power plants need to source coal at viable rates. The Chotia mine with its capacity of one million tonne per annum will directly feed our captive power plants, besides imports and SECL through auction."

"The coal auctions have been watershed for the Indian economy. Through a transparent bidding process, companies from the regulated and the non-regulated sector have been awarded mines. This has ensured a level-playing field for companies, both public sector and private," Nair added.

Aluminium prices have dropped by over 40% in the past four years and are currently hovering at USD 1,460 per tonne. Seamless supply of coal through the Chotia mine along with optimization of capital and operating expenditure will help in business sustainability as the company can produce aluminium at more affordable rates, Balco said in a statement.

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