Assocham suggests setting up coal trading

Industry body Assocham today suggested to the government to set up a coal trading company to import the dry fuel to bridge the demand-supply gap.

The entity could be found on the lines of public sector MMTC and it should sell coal to user industries in the country through a long-term agreement, Assocham said, presenting a study it undertook jointly with global consultancy firm Ernst and Young to the finance and coal ministries.

The study on domestic coal industry said the proposed company "should also set up huge regional coal dumps located strategically to optimise procurement of both indigenous and imported coal with appropriate connectivity to mines and ports".

Assocham president Swati Piramal in a statement said the coal movement "to and from the regional coal dumps could be done through a dedicated railway network, owned and managed by the suggested company".

The government has said the country faces a shortage of 70 million tonnes of coal this fiscal.