Coal Imports Fall 8.5% in Feb Amid High Stockpiles, Firm Global Prices

India's coal import dropped 8.5 per cent to 16.55 million tonnes in February on record stockpile of domestic coal and firmness in seaborne prices.

The country's coal import is poised to maintain a weak trend this month with domestic miners making efforts to liquidate stockpiles.

"A record high stockpile of domestic coal and firm seaborne prices resulted in a drop in thermal coal imports. With the domestic miners endeavouring to liquidate stocks, the weak trend in imports is expected to continue during the current month," mjunction MD & CEO Vinaya Varma said.

mjunction services is a B2B e-commerce platform and joint venture between Tata Steel and Steel Authority of India.

The import in February 2024-25 stood at 18.10 (MT), according to data compiled by mjunction services limited.

The import in February 2024-25 stood at 18.10 (MT), according to data compiled by mjunction services limited.

On a month-on-month basis, coal import in February was almost flat as against 16.64 MT in January 2026.

Of the total imports in February, non-coking coal imports stood at 9.80 MT, lower than 11.08 MT imported in February 2024-25. Coking coal imports stood at 3.92 MT, higher than 3.79 MT imported in February 2024-25.

During April-February 2025-26, non-coking coal import was at 137.60 MT, lower than 152.26 MT imported during the same period in 2024-25. Coking coal import was at 54.31 MT during April-February 2025-26, against 49.62 MT recorded for April-February 2024-25.

The drop in import comes amid a strategic push for self-reliance in coal production under the self-reliance initiative.

The all-India coal production in 2024-25 stood at 1,047.523 MT in comparison to 997.826 MT in 2023-24, registering a growth of about 4.98 per cent.

Coal inventories at thermal power plants remained comfortable around 55 million tonnes as of Tuesday, sufficient for 24 days of uninterrupted power generation based on the average consumption over the last seven days, a senior coal ministry official said on Wednesday.

The stock levels indicate "absolute no deficit" on the power generation side, coal Joint Secretary Sanjeev Kumar Kassi had emphasised, allaying concerns over potential shortages amid rising summer demand.

"Coal stock at the power plants is around 55 million tonnes as of yesterday (Tuesday), adequate for 24 days of uninterrupted power generation based on the average consumption of the last seven days. So we have absolutely no deficit at the power generation side," he said at an inter-ministerial briefing on the developments in West Asia.

The domestic coal production is matching consumption levels, the official had said.