The hike in coal cess should increase the cost of electricity at the consumer end.

The Finance Minister Arun Jaitley has proposed to double the clean-energy cess on coal to Rs 200 per tonne.

According to preliminary estimates, for units located within 200 km of the mine, the generation cost should move up by 8 paise.

Considering coal is transported a little over 500 km on an average, the average hike in power tariff is estimated at 40 paise.

Consumers of state utilities in Maharashtra and Tamil Nadu that source coal from as far as Odisha and West Bengal should be particularly hit.

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