ECT Welcomes India Coal Report

INTERNATIONAL news reports predicting India's coal imports would rise to 50 million tonnes within a year have been welcomed by Melbourne based technology company Environmental Clean Technologies.

Chief Executive Officer, Mr Kos Galtos, said this estimated 20 million tonne per annum increase validated the company's short and long term goals to supply its black coal equivalent Coldry pellets into India, with research showing the country's coal requirements were likely to hit 135 million tonnes annually within two years.

"These reports confirm our own market research in India," Mr Galtos said.

"We are currently engaged with about seven Indian companies who are "¨looking to import Coldry pellets from brown coal resources outside "¨India, or who are considering developing a brown coal resource in "¨India for use in the domestic market."

Mr Galtos said the country's demand for coal was rising, particularly from the steel and power sectors which were expanding capacity.

He said most Indian power stations had only a weeks' supply of coal as a buffer.

Last week, the country's largest coal producer, Coal India, confirmed it would miss its output target for the financial year ending on March 31, and would scale back its projected target for 2011-2012.

Its own imports were likely to soar from 1.5 million tonnes, to around 10 million tonnes next year.

Reports of a national coal shortfall are backed by reports from India's leading power producer, NTPC Ltd, which announced its power generation had grown by 5.45 per cent in December, but would have grown 6.5 per cent if adequate coal supplies were available.

For Further Information Contact:

Kos Galtos - Chief Executive +61 3 9909 7684 or [email protected]