Coal news and updates

When shipping minister G K Vasan officially inaugurates the movement of imported coal in barges by NTPC to its power plants in Farakka and Kahalgaon from the Sandheads on Monday, he would be unleashing a potential that has remained largely untapped in this country till now.

 

The imported coal has already been transloaded from the mother vessel at the Sandheads and two loaded barges have already moved upriver towards Farakka via Kolkata.If NTPC's plans to move about three million tonnes of coal to Farakka and Kahalgaon (and later Barh) annually, succeeds, many more agencies will start using the waterways as another mode of transport that will be both economical in the long run and ecologically-friendly. Though the stretch from Sagar Island to Allahabad through the Hooghly, Bhagirathi and Ganges river systems was declared National Waterway I several years ago, its potential still needs to be fully realized.

 

"Farakka is nearly 500 km from Sagar. NTPC also moves coal by rail from Haldia. The three million tonnes it proposes to move in barges is additional. When the Barh Thermal Power Plant comes up, its distance from Sagar will be 1,000 km. Given India's congested rail routes and poor road connectivity, it makes sense to use the waterway to transport cargo, particularly if volumes are high. As and when the potential is tapped, better facilities will develop along the route," a port official in Kolkata said.

 

Better patronage will also result in more investment in the sector. Jindal ITF, an O P Jindal Group company proposes to pump in nearly Rs 500 crore to transport NTPC's imported coal from the Sandheads. NTPC has drawn up a seven year contract with the company. Once inland waterways are considered a viable option, several more operators are likely to invest. For ports like Haldia, where transloading is taken very seriously, movement of cargo in barges will be very important.

 

"The Kolkata Port Trust (KoPT) also wants riverine traffic to and from Bangladesh to go up. It also wants to use the river to transport commodities to the northeastern states," another official said.

 

Farakka Barrage authorities have also assured that its lock will be upgraded to allow more barges to cross. This will prevent unnecessary delays. Night navigation facilities along the stretch are also being improved.

 

 

Source: ToI