India’s coal sector has transitioned from captive allocation to a competitive auction-based framework, enabling commercial mining in India. Key reforms such as Mineral Laws (Amendment) Ordinance, 2020, removal of end-use restrictions and introduction of revenue-sharing auctions linked to the National Coal Index have enabled market-driven participation. Since June 2020, about 136 coal blocks have been auctioned in the commercial coal mine route. The Government of India (GoI) continues to expand the commercial coal mining pipeline through successive auction rounds, with the latest round (14th tranche) offering 41 mines across key coal-bearing states. The tranche includes ~5.3 billion tonnes of resources and ~35 mtpa of peak annual capacity (only from explored blocks), supporting incremental domestic coal supply over the medium term.

Exhibit: Tranche-wise coal mines successfully auctioned and success rate (%)

Source: MSTC, ICRA Research