Mahanadi Coalfields to double Jharsuguda-Sardega line, triple coal handling

Coal India arm targets at 162.5 mn tonne output, will spend Rs 14 bn on project that has potential to offer livelihood to 5,000

Coal India subsidiary Mahanadi Coalfields Ltd (MCL) has decided to double the 53.1 km Jharsuguda-Sardega rail link to scale up coal handling. 

“MCL has already invested Rs 11.25 billion on the railway line. We are going to have a second line wherein total project investment will go up to Rs 25 billion. After commissioning of the second line, the handling capacity will be ramped up to 40 million tonnes per annum (mtpa) from 13 mtpa”, said Jaswinder Pal Singh, director (technical & operations), MCL.

Singh said, MCL produced 143 million tonnes (mt) of coal in last fiscal. In FY19, the coal miner aims at an output of 162.5 mt with 163 mt of coal despatches. “No power plant will starve for want of coal”, Singh said.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi is set to inaugurate the Jharsuguda-Sardega line during his Odisha visit on September 22 and dedicate to the nation the Garjanbahal open cast project (OCP) of MCL.

The Garjanbahal OCP in Sundargarh district is endowed with 230 mt of coal reserves. To start with, the project will have an initial mining capacity of 13 million tonnes per annum (mtpa). The project envisages direct employment opportunity for 894 people and indirect employment for approximately 5,000 others.