Don't foresee any coal shortage till March 2022: CIL Chief
Kolkata, Dec 9: Coal India Ltd on Thursday said it does not foresee any shortage of dry fuel for power producers till March 2022 as it is focusing on ramping up production to secure a stock of about 70 million tonne by end of the current fiscal.
Around 100 million tonne of pithead stock, which was carried forward from the last fiscal, was "not desired" but it helped the miner meet requirements when coal demand went up a few months ago, an official said.
"We don't foresee any challenge for coal till March for supplying to power stations as we are ramping up production so that we can add around 40 million tonne to the stock to achieve a desirable stock level of 70 million tonne by the year-end, Coal India chairman Pramod Agrawal said at an e-conclave organised by the Bengal Chamber of Commerce and Industry.
He said the last quarter saw "high" output, and issues related to the production of Central Coalfields Ltd and Bharat Coking Coal Ltd are also getting resolved.
The Maharatna PSU produced 125.83 million tonne of coal in the July-September quarter, up from 114.98 million tonne in the year-ago period.
The miner is also optimistic about resolving issues pertaining to land for Rajmahal mine of Eastern Coalfields with the Jharkhand government at the earliest, he said.
Jharkhand Chief Minister Hemant Soren had in July asked Coal India for immediate payment of Rs 56,000 crore outstanding dues in lieu of government land allotted to it for mining.
The coal behemoth is also exploring opportunities in solar power and mining other resources.
We are trying for bauxite mining in Odisha, and if we get it, we will go for an aluminium project," Agrawal said.
The Centre had already approved diversification plans of the miner.
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Real Madrid fines Valverde and Tchouaméni half a million euros each for altercation
Barcelona (AP): Real Madrid slapped players Federico Valverde and Aurélien Tchouaméni with half-a-million-euro ($588,000) fines on Friday for their altercation during practice.
The massive fines came a day after the midfielders tussled when the team trained. Valverde said in a post on social media on Thursday that no punches were thrown. But Valverde knocked his head on a table and he suffered a small cut that required a brief hospital visit.
On social media, Valverde initially called it a “meaningless fight” with a teammate and said “everything has been blown out of proportion."
His employers, however, considered it a significant enough breach of team discipline to nail both Valverde and Tchouaméni with fines that bite even the bank account of a top soccer player. The half-a-million euro penalties reflect the reputational damage the club was enduring in a chaotic end to a disappointing season.
In a statement, the 15-time European champion said its disciplinary action was concluded after both players expressed to the club “their complete remorse for what happened and apologized to one another.”
Madrid added they also apologized to their teammates, the coaching staff and club supporters, as well as showing their willingness to accept whatever disciplinary action the club deemed “opportune.”
Tchouaméni was back training with Madrid on Friday, two days before they play at Barcelona in a clasico. Madrid has to win otherwise Barcelona will be crowned La Liga champion.
After being notified of the fine, he posted a public apology to the club and its fans on social media.
“What happened this week in training is unacceptable,” Tchouaméni wrote. "I say this while thinking about the example we are expected to set for young people, whether in football or at school.
“Above all, I am sorry for the image we projected of the club.”
Valverde was not at practice due to the head knock.
Both players are set to play in the World Cup next month, with Tchouaméni playing for France and Valverde for Uruguay.
Chaotic end to a poor season
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The run-in between the players, who for seasons have played side by side in Madrid's midfield, came after they argued this week in previous training sessions. But tempers boiled over on Thursday. Spanish media was rife with reports that the players previously disagreed over the club's decision to let coach Xabi Alonso go after just months on the job.
It was not the only altercation involving Madrid players during training this week. Álvaro Carreras confirmed he was in a “minor” incident with a teammate. Spanish media said he and fellow defender Antonio Rüdiger got into a scuffle.
Álvaro Arbeloa, the coach who was promoted from Madrid's reserve team when Alonso was fired in January, will face tough questions on what went wrong inside the changing room when he gives a press conference on Saturday ahead of the clasico at Camp Nou.
Madrid is facing a second consecutive campaign without a major trophy amid rumors in the Spanish media that club president Florentino Pérez is considering bringing back Jose Mourinho to straighten out his underperforming team.
