Tamil Nadu - Chennai

Karunanidhi denies charge on coal quality

CHENNAI: Chief Minister M. Karunanidhi has refuted Pattali Makkal Katchi founder-president S. Ramadoss’ allegation of corruption and “inferior quality” in the coal being imported for power generation in the State, saying it was a “figment of imagination.”

In a statement, he said the Tamil Nadu Electricity Board had been importing coal only through the Central Government-owned MMTC, which also certifies quality. The price of the coal imported by the Board was decided by ascertaining which was the lower figure: that day’s market price or the price paid by other power corporations, he said. In fact, the Board had agreed to import coal at a cost lower than both the external market price and the price paid by others.

The quality of the imported coal must be certified according to MMTC’s and the Board’s standards, and was tested by a globally certified organisation, he said. Money was paid only for coal that met those standards. Hence, there was no possibility of corruption.

Reviewing the history of coal import by the Board, Mr. Karunanidhi said that until 2003, the Board’s coal requirement of 15 million tonnes a year for four thermal power plants with a total capacity of 2970 MW was met by Coal India Limited.

However, in 2004, the Union Coal Ministry advised the electricity boards to start importing coal since Coal India’s output would not be able to meet their total needs. Since then, Coal India’s supply had steadily come down, while the amount of imported coal had risen from 11 lakh tonnes in 2005-06 to 18 lakh tonnes in 2007-08.

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