India's power utility coal imports edged down month on month in July 2026 but remained the second-highest in the past year, with double-digit year-on-year growth.

Imports by Indian power utilities totaled 4.55 million tonnes in July 2026, up 13.25% year on year but down 2.9% from the previous month, according to the latest data from the Central Electricity Authority (CEA).

Of the total, 4.08 million tonnes were supplied to plants running directly on imported coal, up 22.21% year on year and 1.3% month on month. Another 477,900 tonnes were used for blending with domestic coal, down 30.3% year on year and 28.29% from a month earlier, accounting for 10.49% of t