Cutting production costs, quality key for SCCL survival, CMD Krishna Bhaskar tells employees

SCCL chairman and managing director D Krishna Bhaskar urged employees to improve coal quality and reduce production costs to face growing competition in the coal market. Speaking at Republic Day celebrations, he said quality and pricing would determine the company’s future

Kothagudem: Singareni Collieries Company Limited (SCCL) chairman and managing director D Krishna Bhaskar has called upon employees to maintain quality standards to compete with private and other government companies in the coal market.

He took part in the 77th Republic Day central celebrations organised under the aegis of SCCL at Prakasam Stadium here on Monday and unfurled the national flag. Singareni security personnel, Scouts and Guides, Colour Party and Band Party groups presented a guard of honour to him.

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Speaking on the occasion, Krishna Bhaskar said that there were many government institutions in the country, of which only a few had faced several ups and downs and were still moving forward. SCCL was one such organisation.

Although it was referred to the Board for Industrial and Financial Reconstruction (BIFR) twice in the 1990s due to severe losses, the workers, officials and trade unions worked together to save the company. Today, SCCL stands as a leading public sector undertaking in the country.

In accordance with changed government policies, employees have the responsibility to maintain high performance and quality standards to face market competition. Until now, government companies had dominated the coal sector, but that situation no longer exists.

Power companies now have the freedom to purchase quality coal from anywhere, and there is no guarantee that past agreements mandating purchases from SCCL will continue, Krishna Bhaskar explained.

He said the company could survive in a competitive market only by supplying quality coal at competitive prices, which requires reducing production costs that are currently higher at Singareni compared to other producers. Efforts to reduce production costs have not been fully successful.

Several companies have openly stated that they do not want low-quality coal, and this must be taken seriously as quality will determine the survival of both the company and its employees.

Reducing coal prices and improving quality standards are the two most critical challenges before SCCL. Every officer and employee should work hard to overcome these challenges and earn the trust of consumers, the CMD added. He later felicitated outstanding officers and employees along with their family members.