Case Study:About the companyBlack Diamond Ltd. (BDL) is a public limited company in Country-B engaged in mining and production of coal and coal products. The mission of the company is "to be a partner in the economy by p

Case Study:About the companyBlack Diamond Ltd. (BDL) is a public limited company in Country-B engaged in mining and production of coal and coal products. The mission of the company is "to be a partner in the economy by producing and fulfilling the energy demand of the country by providing quality coal in economical and sustainable manner". The company is listed on a stock exchange of the Country B. Shares of the company are held by the Govt. of Country-B, Mutual funds & FII and general public in proportion of 75%, 12% and 13% respectively. During the financial year 2018-19, the company has produced and dispatched 500 million tonnes of coal. Of this 76% to power plants, 2% to steel plant and rest to other sectors.Coal is the prime source of energy and fulfills approx. 70% of energy demand of the country B. The thermal power plants, steel manufacturing plants, cement and fertilizer plants are the major consumers of coal.The country-B has a large reserve of coal but the quality and cost are major concern. In the last few years there has been increase in import of coal by steel and power plants. The steel plants import coal due to quality and cost advantage over domestic coal. As per a study report conducted by the BDL, good quality of coal can be produced only through deep and underground mining. Underground mining requires highly automated technology.Challenges before BDLFor adopting deep underground mining the BDL is required to acquire land for new mines and latest automated machines for mining. Land acquisition in country-B has been a hard task due to land acquisition related laws and protests by the local community and NGOs as BDL has acres of idle land in the form of used abandoned mines which cannot be used for agricultural activities or human rehabilitation due to the risk of landslides. BDL is a labour intensive company with low productivity. Employee cost is the major cost of BDL which accounts for 55% of total cost. BDL is second largest employer in country B.Till recent past, the BDL was the only company which was allowed for mining and marketing of the coal in the country but with the changing economic scenario and to meet the growing energy demand the Govt. of Country-B is mulling to allot coal blocks to steel plant and thermal power plant for captive consumption.The Govt. of the Country B is committed to boost manufacturing and industrial infrastructure of the country in next 10 years. Power and steel sector would be witnessing a multifold increase in demand not only from Govt. schemes but also from private and domestic consumers.To meet the energy demand, the Govt. has reduced the duty on imported coal. The Govt. being a signatory of Paris agreement on climate change, is committed for sustainable development by reducing carbon emission caused by usage of fossil fuels. It has entered into various technological MoUs to install clean energy sources like nuclear, solar and wind in near future.Required: (iii) Explain the strategy BDL should adopt to survive and gain competitive advantage.