MOIL earmarks Rs 250-cr for prospecting Maharashtra mines

The company will conduct geophysical studies and exploratory drilling

State-run manganese ore producer MOIL Ltd has earmarked Rs 250 crore investment for conducting geophysical studies and exploratory drilling on 597 acres of area in Maharashtra.

 

"...The grant of Prospecting Licence (PL) for an area of 597.44 hectares in Nagpur and Bhandara by Maharashtra has come at the right time...Anticipating the grant, Rs 250 crore has been earmarked for conducting geophysical studies, exploratory drilling," MOIL CMD G P Kundargi said in the annual report.

 

"After completion of preliminary studies, these leases shall be converted to Mining Leases so as to start the mining operations in the coming years," he added.

MOIL Ltd would utilise the area for expansion of existing mines and there is a possibility of opening up of at least four mines.

 

"This will go a long way in augmenting the production of manganese ore in the country in the coming years which in turn will help to meet the demand of steel Industry to a great extent," Kundargi said, adding MOIL Ltd was taking expeditious action to develop the area at the earliest.

 

MOIL Ltd produced 11.38 lakh tonnes of various grades of Manganese Ore as against 10.71 lakh tonnes in the previous year registering growth of 6.35%.

 

It had clocked Rs 967.12 crore revenue during 2012-13, a hike of 7.51% over the previous fiscal.

 

MOIL Ltd is the largest producer of manganese ore in India with a share of 51%. However, India needs to import around 23.5 lakh tonnes per annum to meet the domestic need.

 

The company proposed to achieve a production level of 15 lakh tonnes by 2016-17 and 22 lakh tonnes by 2020-21. MOIL Ltd holds about 735 lakh tonnes of reserves, which is about 44% of the country's proven reserves.