Coke is an essential raw material for many important industries like steel, aluminium, foundries and chemical units. It is estimated that steel plants need around 20 million tonnes of coke and a further 9-10 million tonnes of coke is needed in secondary steel sector. Other industries consume around 4-5 million tonnes of coke per year.
In India, the merchant metallurgical coke capacities are largely situated in western India, logistics and proximity to a large consumer market being the primary factors contributing to this skewed concentration.
In the East, there are a large number of small cokeries with capacities ranging between 6,000 TPA to 48,000 TPA. Their cumulative capacity is estimated at around 50 lac TPA. These units are primarily situated near the Dhanbad coal belt. The industry is facing stricter standards due to high polluting nature and many cokeries around the Dhanbad have been closed due to high pollution.
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