India’s thermal-power coal-stock pressure remains active. The latest national critical-stock count identified in current evidence remains 59 thermal power plants as of September 9, while newer September 17 reporting shows that Indian utilities sharply increased imported-coal purchases during August as electricity demand rose.
The current picture is therefore mixed rather than uniformly improving: domestic coal production and dispatches have been recovering as monsoon disruption eases, but plant-level inventories remain stressed and utilities have also relied more heavily on imports to meet higher power-sector coal consumption.
Direct answer: 59 plants remains the latest identified national critical-stock count. Coal supply flows are improving, but August power-sector coal imports reached a 15-month high, showing that utilities still needed additional fuel while demand remained strong. None of this by itself establishes a nationwide electricity shortage caused by coal scarcity.
What is the current India thermal power coal-stock status?
The latest evidence supports these points:
- 59 thermal power plants were reported at critical coal-stock levels as of September 9 in Reuters reporting based on Central Electricity Authority data.
- Power-sector coal imports rose sharply in August: Reuters reported imports of about 5.52 million metric tonnes, the highest in 15 months and about 85.6% above the year-earlier level.
- Domestic supply also increased, but more slowly than consumption: Reuters reported domestic coal supply to the power sector increased by about 2.3 million tonnes while power-sector coal consumption increased by roughly 10 million tonnes.
- Coal India production had rebounded: daily output reached about 1.91 million tonnes on September 8 as rains eased.
- Power-sector dispatches improved: Coal India supplies to the power sector reached about 1.74 million tonnes on September 8.
- Rail loading had already risen sharply: Ministry of Coal data showed power-sector rake loading increasing from 370 rakes on September 3 to 444 on September 6.
These indicators show stronger fuel movement into the electricity system, but they do not establish that critically stocked generating stations have already rebuilt adequate on-site inventories.
What does ‘critical coal stock’ mean?
A thermal plant enters the critical-stock category when its coal inventory falls below the applicable monitoring threshold. The Ministry of Coal identifies plants below 25% of their normative stock requirement as critical and says such plants are closely monitored.
A critical classification is a fuel-inventory warning. It does not automatically mean that the plant has shut down, stopped generating electricity or caused load shedding.
How many thermal plants are currently critical?
The latest national count identified in the reviewed evidence is 59 thermal power plants as of September 9.
Reuters reported that nearly one-third of India’s coal-fired plants were at critically low inventory levels, citing Central Electricity Authority data.
No newer nationwide critical-plant count was identified in the sources reviewed through September 18. That means 59 should be treated as the latest identified national count, not as a claim that the number has remained unchanged every day since September 9.
Why did India’s power-sector coal imports jump in August?
Reuters reported on September 17 that Indian utilities imported about 5.52 million metric tonnes of coal in August, the highest monthly level in 15 months and about 85.6% above August 2025.
The increase followed stronger electricity demand during hot weather and weaker hydropower generation, which increased reliance on coal-fired generation. Reuters reported that power-sector coal consumption rose by roughly 10 million tonnes while domestic supply increased by only about 2.3 million tonnes.
This gap helps explain why utilities turned to additional imported coal even while domestic production and dispatches were improving.
Reuters also reported that roughly 4.2 million tonnes of the August imports came from Indonesia, making Indonesia the dominant supplier in that month’s imported-coal mix.
Does the import surge mean domestic coal supply failed?
Not by itself.
The evidence shows that domestic coal availability and logistics were improving, but power-sector demand increased faster than domestic supply during August. Imports therefore acted as an additional source of fuel rather than proving that domestic coal movement had stopped.
The important distinction is between three different measures:
- coal available across the wider system;
- coal being produced and transported; and
- coal physically present at each individual thermal power station.
A system can have substantial total coal availability while some power plants remain critically stocked because fuel has not yet reached those stations or because incoming coal is being consumed quickly.
Are coal supplies still normalising?
Current supply-side evidence continues to point to recovery.
Union Coal Minister G. Kishan Reddy said on September 8 that supplies to thermal power plants were gradually normalising after monsoon-related disruption to coal production and movement.
Financial Express reported that Coal India’s daily production rose to about 1.91 MT on September 8 from roughly 1.36 MT during September 1-3, while supplies to the power sector increased to about 1.74 MT.
That is positive for replenishment, but stronger production and dispatch should not be treated as proof that critically stocked plants have already rebuilt their inventories.
How much coal does India have across the wider system?
Reddy said India had approximately 123.7 million tonnes of coal across the wider supply system.
- around 100 MT was with coal companies or in transit; and
- around 23.7 MT was at thermal power plants.
The minister described that wider-system stock as sufficient for roughly 51 days at the cited national consumption rate of about 2.4 MT per day.
That does not mean every thermal power plant has 51 days of coal. Coal can be available at mines, sidings or in transit while an individual generating station has a critically low physical stockpile.
Why can national coal availability improve while critical plants remain high?
Coal availability and coal location are different questions.
The supply chain includes:
- coal production at mines;
- loading at mine sidings and dispatch points;
- rail or road movement;
- arrival at power stations; and
- rebuilding plant stock while coal is simultaneously consumed for electricity generation.
High electricity demand can slow inventory rebuilding because incoming coal may be consumed almost as quickly as it arrives. The August import increase reinforces that demand was strong enough for utilities to seek additional fuel beyond domestic deliveries.
What happened to coal rake loading?
The Ministry of Coal’s September 7 release shows power-sector rake loading rising on four consecutive days:
- September 3: 370 rakes
- September 4: 387 rakes
- September 5: 413 rakes
- September 6: 444 rakes
That was an increase of 74 rakes per day, or about 20%, over the four-day period.
The Ministry said corrective supply measures were being directed toward critically stocked plants.
Does higher Coal India production mean the problem is solved?
No.
Higher mine output, stronger rail loading and increased dispatches are leading indicators of recovery. The latest identified critical-plant count of 59 shows that plant inventories still need monitoring.
The strongest evidence of a more complete recovery would be:
- a sustained fall in the number of critical plants;
- higher physical coal inventory at thermal stations;
- improved stock relative to normative requirements;
- lower reliance on emergency or elevated imported-coal purchases where those imports are being used to cover domestic supply-demand gaps; and
- continued absence of material generation constraints caused by coal availability.
Is India facing a nationwide electricity shortage because of coal?
No nationwide coal-caused electricity shortage is established by the evidence reviewed.
Electricity-system stress can reflect several factors including high demand, hydropower availability, transmission constraints, generating-unit outages and fuel supply. Critical coal stocks or higher imports alone do not prove nationwide power cuts.
The relevant risk is that persistently low inventories could constrain generation if deliveries fail to keep pace with consumption. Current evidence instead shows stronger domestic production and transport, combined with increased imported-coal purchases, while critically stocked plants remain under pressure.
Why are thermal plants under pressure?
The current evidence points to a combination of monsoon-related disruption, strong electricity demand and reduced hydropower support.
Reuters reported that August power-sector coal consumption increased sharply as hotter weather boosted electricity demand. That demand increase outpaced the reported rise in domestic coal supply, contributing to the jump in imported-coal purchases.
What should readers watch next?
- CEA critical-plant count: whether a newer national count moves below the latest identified 59.
- Thermal-plant inventory: whether physical coal stock at generating stations increases.
- Coal India output: whether the September production rebound is sustained.
- Power-sector dispatch: whether higher coal deliveries continue to reach generating stations.
- Rake loading: whether elevated rail movement continues beyond the early-September level.
- Import dependence: whether the August import surge reverses as domestic supply improves or remains elevated because demand stays strong.
- Generation constraints: whether CEA, Grid-India or the Ministry of Power reports actual generation loss caused by coal availability.
What does the current evidence not prove?
- that all 59 critical plants are close to shutting down;
- that every critical plant has the same number of days of coal;
- that the 123.7 MT wider-system stock is physically present at power stations;
- that higher mine output has already rebuilt plant inventories;
- that higher coal imports automatically mean domestic coal supplies have failed;
- that a critical-stock classification automatically means load shedding; or
- that every electricity-supply problem is caused by coal scarcity.
Verification method
ThePulseSignal checked the Ministry of Coal’s verified rake-loading release and current CEA reporting surfaces, and compared them with Reuters reporting based on CEA data, current reporting on Coal India’s production and dispatch recovery, and Reuters’ September 17 report on August power-sector coal imports and consumption.
The latest identified national critical-plant count remains 59 as of September 9. Newer evidence adds an important demand-side signal: power-sector coal imports rose to a 15-month high in August as consumption increased faster than domestic supply.
Limitations and unresolved facts
ThePulseSignal did not identify a newer nationwide critical-plant count after the September 9 CEA-linked figure of 59. TPS also did not independently extract a new plant-by-plant CEA table in this review. The 123.7 MT stock figure combines coal at power plants, coal-company stocks and coal in transit, and should not be used as a plant-level days-of-stock measure. August import data describes national power-sector fuel procurement and does not show which individual critical plants received imported coal. No nationwide coal-caused electricity shortage was established by the evidence reviewed.
Bottom line: India’s coal-supply system is moving more fuel, but thermal-plant inventory pressure remains real. The latest identified critical count is 59, while August imports reached a 15-month high because power-sector consumption increased faster than domestic supply. The next decisive evidence is whether stronger domestic supply and additional imported fuel begin to reduce the number of critically stocked plants.
Last verified: September 18, 2026.
