NTPC plans to seek bids in next two to three months for long-term supply of imported coal of up to 20 million tonnes per annum. Speaking to reporters in New Delhi today on the sidelines of a conference, NTPC CMD Arup Roy Choudhury said the PSU will seek bids for supply of imported coal for a period of 15-20 years. The amount will be up to 20 milliontonnes per year . He said bids wills be invited in next two to three months.Recently, severe coal shortages due to multiple factorshad hurt power generation at various NTPC plants.Mr Choudhury noted that imported coal would not be the solution for the country due to its cost. He said that domestic coal production needs to be increased.