2. Seventy Sixth Annual General Meeting

The President, Secretary and some of the Executive Committee members of CCAI had attended the meeting physically maintaining standard COVID protocol while others had joined through virtual mode considering the safety and security of the valued members of the Association and officials of CCAI.

Esteemed member companies from both Power and Non-power sectors graced the meeting through VC. The outgoing president of the Association, Shri Swapan Maity of WBPDCL was presented with a flower bouquet by CCAI Secretary Ms. Subhasri Chaudhuri.

At the outset, the outgoing President thanked everyone present in the meeting for reposing trust in CCAI and for attending the AGM as well as the First Executive Committee Meeting. He highlighted the plight of Utilities and Industries since last one year due to various impediments caused by the pandemic and complemented the member companies for their efforts to bounce back amid the ongoing adversities. He observed that at present the Association might have lack of resources but not intentions.

Talking about the financial health of the Association, the outgoing President pointed out that CCAI has suffered considerable loss in the last financial year and recorded a negative growth in revenue generation.

He also pointed out that a number of CCAI member companies belong in the lowest threshold of membership tariff. However, their actual consumption of coal at present refers to a higher slab. He sought a little bit of handholding from these esteemed member companies in this regard for the sustenance and growth of the Association.

He said that due to the pandemic situation and subsequent closure of office premises for several months, the invoices for CCAI Annual Membership Subscription could not be raised in time, which caused revenue generation of this age-old Association to decline further this year. Shri Maity further stated that in order to enhance services of the Association, it requires better workforce so that officials may be placed at strategic locations like New Delhi and at certain Subsidiary Coal Companies covering zonal Railways so that issues of coal quality, procurement and supply may be addressed in a more efficient manner-a point that was mutually agreed upon by the members.

Shri Swapan Maity and members of the Association congratulated Shri Prakash Sethia from India Power Corporation for being elected as the new President of the Association and Shri Dipten Banerjee from Hindalco Industries Limited on becoming the new Vice-president of CCAI. CCAI Executive Committee member Shri Deepak Kumar handed Mr. Sethia a bouquet of flowers and wished him good luck for his tenure as the President of the Association. In his opening remarks, the newly inducted President expressed gratitude for bestowing the responsibility and said the Association is whole-heartedly committed to raise and highlight coal issues faced by its member companies.

Talking about the present coal scenario in the country, he touched upon the pressing concern of acute coal crisis since the last few months. He said coal stock at IPPs have depleted significantly amid huge power demand while the Non-regulated sector is struggling due to halted supply of coal from different Subsidiary companies especially by Rail mode. Meanwhile, the price of imported coal has risen to all time high and extensive ocean freight rates are touching the roof as well, making it unviable for the consumers to import at this point. He hoped that collaborative efforts by the Ministry and coal companies would help find a way to overcome the ongoing crisis.

Explaining the reasons behind ensuing coal crunch across the sectors at present, Head of CCAI Western Chapter Shri Devendra Arolkar stated that the supply has been severely affected due to prolonged monsoon in several parts of India. He apprehended that under the current situation, coal prices may go up even further. He said the overburden removal may commence from November this year which means it may take till MarchApril of 2022 for the supply situation to normalize. He also suggested that CCAI may explore the opportunities by holding discussions with successful bidders of the commercial coal blocks so that coal can be procured from them in the near future.

Shri Kapil Thapar, Executive Director, Fuel Management of RP-SG Group termed the ongoing coal situation in India as the bleakest period in the last 15 years. He urged CIL to at least honour the fuel supply agreements and provide coal to the FSA holders as per MSQ. He also reasoned that the CIL Subsidiaries may refrain from

supplying coal which is much higher than MSQ to Power Sector at one go when it is available as it is not viable to the IPPs to procure excess quantities at all times. He urged CIL to give equal importance to both Power NRS consumers in terms of coal supply. The member pointed out that the Ministry of Coal and Railways are holding regular meetings with the stakeholders from Power Sector to overcome the ongoing coal crisis but no such meetings are being held with the NRS consumers as of now. He suggested that the Ministries may be urged for the same.

Shri Deepak Kumar, Managing Director of Visa Coke Limited suggested that the Association may collect the figures of coal supply shortage from its esteemed member companies and write to Coal India and Ministry of Coal with collective data apart from writing individual letters regarding short-supply. He also urged the fellow members of CCAI to mark a copy to the Association while writing to CIL and Subsidiaries regarding their coal related concerns.

Responding to the discussion, CCAI Secretary Ms. Subhasri Chaudhuri said the Association is planning to hold separate meetings with members from Power and Non-power sector on regular intervals as the issues faced by both sectors are markedly different.

Shri Pradeep Purohit, Senior Vice-President of Meghalaya Cement highlighted the plight of cement plants from North-eastern India under the present crisis and said their plants are hardly getting any supply as they are located at a far-off area from the mines. As the rake movements are completely halted for NRS consumers by Rail mode, many plants in North-east India are on the verge of closure. Also, these plants are not able to import coal due its elevated price and already running FSAs with CIL. He said the Ministry may release at least some quantity of coal immediately in order to ensure the sustenance of those plants. Many of the members present at the meeting readily agreed to the notion.

CCAI Secretary emphasised that under the current condition, procurement through Road and RcR mode may be considered as alternative mode of transportation. She said the Association has already made multiple representations to the Ministry, CIL and Subsidiaries regarding large amounts of funds of the consumers being stuck with ECL and CCL in terms of coal value worth MSQ of more than three months. Though CCL has pondered over and taken a stand on the same, confirmation from ECL is still awaited.

Talking about the world coal scenario at present Shri Vikramjit Singh of Rawmet Resources Pvt Ltd said the rising coal price is a major concern for the buyers of imported coal as South African 6000 NAR coal price has already crossed $200 mark. He explained that Russian miners are not showing interest in exporting coal to India as they are getting a good return from China due to their geographical proximity. Meanwhile, Indonesian coal prices are also on the rise owing to tight supply and high demand, leaving Indian buyers with fewer options. However, he pointed out that US coal prices are relatively competitive and 5000 NAR Australian coal price is comparatively on the lower side and urged the consumers to buy coal now if they have the funds as the price may go up further in the next few months owing to several factors.

Mr. Rajiv Kumar Angra, Senior Vice-President of Vardhman Fabrics and some of the other members from the Non-regulated Sector expressed concerns over the grim coal supply situation. It has been highlighted that due to complete lack of supply, many plants are suffering huge financial loss and are on the verge of shutdown. The members in unison said the Ministry and Coal India needs to take up some positive measures to immediately resume coal supply.

The discussion was followed by a presentation entitled Future of Coal in India by Shri Devendra Arolkar.

The meeting ended with thanks to the Chair and all present in the meeting and VC.

Secretary.