SC panel plans auction of 4 mt of iron ore in Goa

In Nov 2013, SC allowed auction of 11.4 mn tonnes of iron ore lying idle at various mine heads and jetties

A Supreme Court-appointed committee has decided to put on auction about four million tonnes (mt) of iron ore stock at various mine heads in Goa. To begin, the ore lying at various jetties and Mormugao port will be auctioned some time in February, industry sources said.

The modalities are likely to be finalised in a day or two, while the auctions might start early February, sources familiar with the developments said.

In November 2013, the Supreme Court allowed auction of 11.4 mt of iron ore already broken and at various mine heads and river jetties in Goa. A three-member committee, headed by U V Singh, senior Indian Forest Service officer from Karnataka, was constituted to oversee the e-auction in Goa. The committee has visited various mine sites and Mormugao port to take stock.

The department of mines and Geology issued a notice on Tuesday, inviting applications from prospective bidders to participate in the e-auctions.

“The committee has completed the assessment of the quality and quantity of the iron ore available for auctions. The bids will be called from the eligible bidders in the next 10 days or so and the auctions will take place sometime in February,” said Basant Poddar, senior vice-chairman, Federation of Indian Mineral Industries.
He said, as the Supreme Court has not put any restriction on the export of iron ore, it would be better to export this material. It is also not viable on many counts to transport the Goan iron ore to steel mills in Karnataka, he added.

“The committee is yet to decide on the exact date of auctions and all those miners registered with the Indian Bureau of Mines as per Rule 45 are eligible to bid for the iron ore. However, it is for the successful bidders as to what they want to do with the ore. Most probably it will be exported as there is no restriction by the government of Goa nor the Supreme Court on exports,” Swaminathan Sridhar, Executive Director of the Goa Mineral Ore Exporters' Association said.

As per the assessment done by the Singh committee the quality of iron ore is estimated below 58% Fe, he said.

Mining companies in Goa used to export the low-grade iron ore mainly to China before the ban was imposed in September 2012. As the ban was imposed just after the monsoon that year, already broken iron ore at various pit-heads and jetties including Marmugao port meant for exports were left idle.

Poddar said it would not be feasible to transport the Goan ore to Karnataka as the railway stations are thickly inhabited and movement through road is even more difficult due to ghat section. The only best option left for the miners is to export the ore or at best ship them to steel mills in Mumbai. Domestic steel mills may not prefer to use Goan ore, which is of low grade, mostly 52% Fe or less, he added.