Coal output in the first seven months this year rose 13.5 percent year-on-year to 2.12 billion tons, said an official with the China National Coal Association (CNCA) on Sunday.

With steady growth of coal production, coal imports fell 5.4 percent from the same period last year to 78.21 million tons, said Jiang Zhimin, vice president and secretary general of CNCA, at an energy forum held in northwest Ningxia Hui autonomous region.

The coal inventory of key power plants amounted to 63.72 million tons by the end of July, a 15-day supply, according to Jiang.