Coal India output sinks to record low amid floods

Bloomberg

Coal India’s monthly production dropped to a record low as heaviest rains in 25 years flooded mines and hindered shipments.
The Kolkata-based state miner produced 30.77 million tons of coal in September, down 24 percent from a year earlier and the lowest in data back to 2013, according to a stock exchange filing. Shipments dropped 20 percent to 35.18 million tons, the lowest in five years. The slump in output and shipments at the world’s biggest coal producer is squeezing supplies to customers,
including power plants, aluminum smelters. Coal inventories at the country’s power plants have declined to a nine-month low, spurring imports.
“This year, the monsoon has been unusually long and that has affected output at mines,” said Rupesh Sankhe, an analyst at Elara Securities.