Nalco, MECL, HCL boards approve JV project, to be named Kabil

JV company to acquire and develop strategic minerals overseas

The boards of three central public sector undertakings (CPSEs) have approved the proposal to form a joint venture (JV) company. National Aluminium Company (Nalco), Mineral Exploration Corporation Ltd (MECL) and Hindustan Copper Ltd (HCL) would forge the JV firm.

In the JV company to be titled 'Khanij Bidesh India Ltd' (KABIL), Nalco would have an equity of 34 per cent. Both MECL and HCL's shareholding is pegged at 33 per cent each.

"The boards of the three companies have approved the formation of the JV. Now, with the approval of the government, the paid up capital of the JV and other modalities could be worked out”, said Nalco's chairman and managing director T K Chand.

On September 19 this year, the three CPSEs entered into a memorandum of understanding (MoU) on Tuesday with the objective of making the country self-reliant in the areas of 12 strategic minerals that are either not available in the country or not available in optimum quantity.

The MoU was signed by T K Chand, chairman cum managing director (CMD), Nalco, Santosh Sharma, CMD at HCL and Gopal Dhawan, CMD of MECL.

The JV is tasked with identifying, exploring, acquiring, developing and processing the strategic minerals overseas for commercial use and for supplying to India to meet the domestic requirements due to its non-availability in the country and giving a boost to Make in India drive of the Government of India. The identified strategic minerals include tin, tungsten, titanium, gallium, lithium, tantalum, cobalt, niobium, selenium and indium. The objective is to make the country self-sufficient in such minerals.

The JV firm would hunt for such mineral assets primarily in South Africa and other African countries. It can either go for outright buyouts of the assets or forge tie-ups with local companies there.