The government has extended the last date to February 3 for submission of technical bid for coal block auction.
"The technical bid due date has been extended to February 3," an official source said, adding that earlier bid due date was January 31.
The last date for submission of bids was extended as interested bidders had sought more time from the government, the source said. The bids will be opened on the same day, the source added.
The government will auction 46 coal blocks to private companies.
Under the schedule II (producing mines) category, 23 blocks will be put on offer. The auction would be held between February 14 and February 22 and the vesting orders will be issued by March 23.
Under the Schedule III (ready to produce mines) category, another set of 23 mines will be auctioned between February 25 and March 5. The vesting orders will be issued by April 2.
Also, the Coal Ministry last week started the process for allocation of 36 mines to PSUs.
Of the 36 blocks listed by the government, 35 will go to power PSUs while the remaining one has been earmarked for a steel PSU.
