Coal India to ease e-auction norms; plans to tweak auction, allocation methodology

New Delhi: Maharatna coal behemoth Coal India Limited (CIL) on Friday said it has taken steps to ease e-auction norms like lowering the earnest money and enhancing the quantity of the dry fuel on offer.

The company is also planning to tweak its auction and allocation methodology, as it aims to encourage increased participation.

"CIL has taken steps to ease the norms in e-auctions like lowering the earnest money deposit (EMD) and ramping up the quantities offered under the auction hammer," the PSU said in a statement.

The coal behemoth has asked all its arms barring Northern Coalfields Ltd, to spike up their offer quantity under e-auction to 40 per cent of their respective total production for the second and third quarters of this financial year.

At present, Coal India operates only a single window mode agnostic e-auction scheme, where consumers can opt their own preferred mode of transport of coal.

"The company is also planning a revamp of its auction and allocation methodology under its electronic window," the statement said.

A concept note has been circulated to seek the feedback of the e-auction bidders.

Among others, some of the changes contemplated are a three-hour auction window replacing the earlier long-drawn process; allowing the consumers to change their mode of transport from rail to road post bidding without additional premium; allowing a single bidder to place a maximum of four bids against each basket which earlier was restricted to one bid.

The move to lower earnest money deposit in e-auctions by more than a third from Rs 500 per tonne of coal to Rs 150 per tonne aims at encouraging increased participation. With more cash availability at their disposal consumers could switch over to more auctions with the same capital.

Though the PSU is already supplying improved quantities of coal as is evident by its loading, the company intends to step in to meet any latent demand as well. The rake loading on an average was 316.7/day in the current fiscal year with a jump of 40 rakes/day over the same period last year, it said.

Generally, coal is supplied to consumers at notified prices. Reserve price in e-auction means the price that is arrived at, after adding on a certain percentage to notified price of coal.

Now, subsidiaries have been given flexibility to fix their reserve prices taking into account different factors like local demand-supply scenarios from different sources, optimize various modes of loading particularly road mode available with the coal company, coal stock at mine and level of booking in earlier-e-auction.

Coal stock at thermal power plants is at nearly 45 million tonnes which is about 33 per cent more compared to the same period last year. CIL's intention is to supply coal to meet the full domestic demand and cater any latent demand as well that may exist in the system.

Coal India accounts for over 80 per cent of domestic coal production.