The West Bengal Power Development Corporation Limited (WBPDCL) signed a memorandum of understanding with the National Thermal Power Corporation (NTPC), under which they have now started to supply their surplus coal to NTPC on Friday (September 18, 2026).

This comes after the WBPDCL has already met their own coal needs, became self-reliant, and then had surplus. 

The Corporation was once dependent on the Coal India Limited for its coal supply, but in the last five years has become self-reliant. The Corporation said in an official statement that since 2024-25, they have not taken any coal supplies from the CIL and source everything from the WBPDCL captive mines, which were allotted to them in 2019-20. 

“As per the MMDR Act, 2021 of Ministry of Coal, GOI, any allottee can sell 50% of annual coal production after meeting the requirement of the end-use plants, and fulfilling all the compliances regarding taxes and levies. WBPDCL has an average daily consumption of 60,000 tons of coal, and an average production of more than that. With reference to the MMDR Act and as WBPDCL has surplus coal, WBPDCL can sell surplus coal now,” the Corporation said in an official statement. 

With captive production now exceeding its own consumption, the State power utility has commenced the sale of surplus coal in the open market, starting with NTPC. WBPDCL plan to sell 3.5 million tonnes of goal by March 2027, the WBPDCL also added.