Coal Ministry Allocates 200th Coal Mine, Opens 12th Commercial Auction Round With 38 Bids For 8 Blocks

The Ministry of Coal announced on Tuesday (17th June) that it has allocated its 200th coal mine, marking a significant milestone in India’s push toward commercial coal mining reforms.

The achievement highlights the Ministry’s commitment to expanding private sector involvement in the coal industry. According to a report by Telangana Today, the 200th coal block, Marwatola II, was awarded to Singhal Business Private Limited—a move that underscores the Ministry’s focus on reforms, private participation, and coal self-reliance.

In a statement, the Ministry outlined the broader impact of this milestone, noting that it supports efforts to build a resilient, transparent, and future-ready coal sector. Emphasizing its reform-driven approach, the Ministry also reiterated its strategic priorities: promoting investment, reducing procedural delays, and expediting the operationalization of coal blocks.

These initiatives are closely aligned with the Ministry’s overarching goals of boosting domestic coal output, reducing import dependency, and enhancing energy security. To achieve these objectives, the Ministry has introduced a range of reforms, including commercial mining, single-window clearance, and digital monitoring—measures aimed at making the sector more efficient and accountable.

Building on this momentum, the Ministry recently launched its latest round of coal block auctions. The 12th commercial coal block auction round received 41 bids for 11 blocks, with submissions accepted both digitally and in physical format.

Transparency was a key priority throughout the process. Online bids were decrypted in the presence of bidders, followed by the opening of offline bid envelopes, all conducted publicly to ensure fairness.

A diverse group of companies participated in the auction, including Damodar Valley Corporation, NLC India Ltd, Jindal Steel and Power Ltd, and Jharkhand Exploration and Mining Corporation. The response was robust, with a total of 38 bids submitted for 8 out of the 11 coal blocks offered in this round.

Looking ahead, officials emphasized the Ministry’s ongoing commitment to sectoral reforms. They noted that the Ministry will continue advancing reforms to strengthen domestic coal production and attract private investment to the sector.