Vessel-line up data published by Indian consulting agency Coalmint has revealed that Russia has outperformed the US and others to become India's third-largest coal supplier in July as imports increased 10 percent to 2.03 million metric tons.
According to Coalmint, thermal coal imports from Russia increased 70.3 percent in July to a record 1.29 million tons as compared to June.
The data further revealed that the imports of coking coal also rose by two-third to more than 280,000 tons.
Aside from Russia, the other top countries which supply coal to India are Indonesia, South Africa, Australia, the US, Mozambique and Colombia.
According to the Coalmint data, Indonesia continues to be the top supplier of coal while South Africa is the second-largest, marginally ahead of Russia.
Cement manufacturers and steelmakers are the major driving forces behind the increased coal imports from Russia.
Additionally, the discounts offered by Russian suppliers to Indian consumers over the past few months have also stimulated the increase in Russian thermal coal, which is mainly used in power generation.
India is the world’s second-largest producer, importer and consumer of coal as most of the coking coal is used in steelmaking.