Emergency Law Invoked To Force Coal-Based Power Plants To Maximise Output

The directive comes into effect on March 16, giving plants the time to import coal ahead of the expected surge in consumption.

The central government on Monday invoked an emergency law to force power plants that run on imported coal to maximise output ahead of an expected record surge in power usage this summer, according to an internal power ministry notice seen by Reuters.

Many of the country's power plants that use imported coal, including those owned by Adani Power and Tata Power in Gujarat, have not operated at full capacity recently because they have found it difficult to compete with power generated from cheap domestic coal.

Reuters reported last month on India's plans to use the law to maximise coal power output.

In the notice sent to all imported coal-based power plants, the ministry said it expects them to operate at full capacity and sell power to buyers on exchanges. India's imported coal plants have a total capacity of 17 gigawatts.