India faces surge in coal imports over next three months

Indian coal imports is likely to gain further momentum during the next three months, reversing a falling trend seen early in the financial year as more user industries are planning to up inward shipments to feed their fuel-starved captive power plants. Several companies in the chemicals, medium scale steel mills, sponge iron units and aluminium smelting industries will be forced to resort to high cost imported coal in the face of lower supplies from domestic miners, at least three officials in industries operating captive thermal power plants have said.