Indian State-run National Aluminium Company Limited (Nalco) is facing an acute shortage of coal supplies of up to almost 50% of its daily requirement to fuel its 1 200 MW of captive thermal power plant, risking the closure of its smelting potlines. Nalco, which operates a 460 000 t aluminium smelter at Angul in the eastern state of Odisha, sources its coal requirements from Mahanadi Coalfields Limited (MCL) – an operational subsidiary of Coal India Limited (CIL) – whose mines are also in the eastern state.
