Goa’s ambitious intend to extract coal from the Dongri Tal II coal block shows to be staring at a setback as the Centre has yet to agree to Goa’s plea for time to finish the formalities and pay the Rs 163.9 crore performance guarantee.
It has been more than two months since Goa Industrial Development Corporation (GIDC) wrote to the Union ministry of coal asking for additional time. With no favourable reply forthcoming, the process to assign a mine developer-cum-operator (MDO) is stuck in a limbo.
However, the Dongri Tal-ll coal block was allocated to GIDC in September 2019, foremost milestones for the coal mine were missed as the state government dragged its feet in complying with norms laid down by the coal ministry, informed sources.
The Dongri-Tal II coal mine at Singrauli in Madhya Pradesh has a 2.9 million tonnes per annum (MTPA) capacity, but the state’s attempts
to exploit the coal mine has been hindered by “political tussles” and “amateurish decisions”, said a source.
GIDC issued the tender to assign a MDO for the coal mine in March and with the Centre’s deadline about to lapse, sought an extension on March 28.
“We are lying low because the Centre has yet to give us an extension. There is no point going ahead with the RFP if the extension does not come through,” stated a GIDC official.
GIDC did organise a pre-bid meeting with potential coal mine developers and even replied some of their queries, but with no clarity about the coal block itself, GIDC has concluded not to proceed with the tender process.
The MDO is answerable for extracting the coal which GIDC can afterward auction online.
The MDO has to get requisite statutory clearances, approvals, permissions, consents and NoCs to operate the coal mine.
The Dongri Tal –II coal block has been allotted by the Union ministry of coal for commercial mining to GIDC, and according to the terms of the allotment agreement, which was contracted in October 2019, at least 25% of the coal extracted in a fiscal year has to be sold to the MSME sectors in Madhya Pradesh and balance coal to other purchasers across India.
The MDO would have to submit a performance guarantee of Rs 77.2 crore sideways with an additional performance guarantee of Rs 163.9 crore which is equivalent to the performance security that GIDC has to submit to the Union ministry of coal.
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