India will import as much as 100 million metric tons of thermal coal by 2012 as new power plants are built, according to Coal and Oil Group, the country’s largest importer of the fuel for energy generation.

NTPC Ltd., India’s biggest power generator, said Jan. 27 it would invest 180 billion rupees ($3.7 billion) to add capacity in the year starting in April. The New Delhi-based company is boosting output to meet demand in the world’s second-fastest- growing major economy, which suffers peak-hour power shortages.

Imports will jump “because of all the power plants being launched,” Kaamil Fareed, senior trading manager at Coal and Oil, said today at a McCloskey coal conference in Cape Town.

India’s imports of thermal coal were more than 28 million tons last year and are expected to rise to 32 million tons in 2009 and 38 million tons in 2010, Fareed said.

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