India produced over a billion tons of coal in 2024-25
The South Asian nation plans to increase production to 1.13 billion tons by 2029-30, he said in a written reply to a question in the upper house of parliament.
Several initiatives have been announced by the government to increase domestic production, such as a single window clearance for new projects, amending regulations, technological improvements, expanding existing projects, and auctioning coal blocks for commercial mining, the website Moneycontrol cited Reddy as saying.
India has already allowed 100% Foreign Direct Investment for commercial mining.
The coal ministry has also sped up coal block development, in which captive mine owners can also sell excess coal in the open market. New Delhi has introduced a Coking Coal Mission to increase the supply of coking coal to the steel sector, with the goal of reducing reliance on imports.
The country still imports coal, but only for specific needs, such as coking coal and higher-grade non-coking coal, which are not readily available in large quantities domestically due to limited reserves or lack of availability, Reddy added. India is dependent on coal for 70% of its electricity needs.
Russia is one of India's major foreign suppliers of coal, accounting for 7.5% of its imports. New Delhi increased imports of Russian thermal coal to a two-year high of 1.3 million tons in May.
India is also looking to produce 5 million metric tons of green hydrogen per year in the next five years. 'Changing to renewable energy will help in pollution reduction and at the same time bring down logistic costs,' Road Transport and Highways Minister Nitin Gadkari said earlier this month
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