Coal production at Barapukuria Coal Mining Company Limited resumed last night following a 43-day suspension for relocating equipment, said Khan Mohammad Zafor Sadiq, general manager (operation-mine) of BCMCL.

"Initially, production will continue on a trial-basis at a rate of 1,500-2,000 tonnes per day. Once the trial run is completed in a few days, daily production is expected to increase to around 3,500-4,000 tonnes," Sadiq added.

BCMCL officials explained that underground coal is extracted from designated pockets known as "Phases".

Production at the 1414 Phase was halted following the depletion of its coal reserve.

Equipment was subsequently relocated to the 1305 Phase in a salvage operation that took approximately 43 days.

The coal reserve at the 1305 Phase is estimated to be around 3.95 lakh tonnes, officials added.