Metals & Minerals

In the financial year 2025-26, the department achieved a record revenue collection of ₹10,394 crore, registering a 13 percent growth rate

Two enormous sandlike dunes at an old chemical processing plant in South Africa are at the centre of an exploratory US-backed project to extract highly sought-after rare earth elements from industrial mining waste. The Phalaborwa Rare Earths Project has US support through a USD 50 million equity investment by the government's International Development Finance Corporation and is part of accelerated US efforts to reduce reliance on economic rival China for the minerals crucial for making electronic devices, robotics, defence systems, electric vehicles and other high-tech products. Countries have identified dozens of minerals, including copper, cobalt, lithium and nickel, as critical because they are essential for new technologies. The 17 rare earth elements are a subset of them. President Donald Trump has made expanding US access to critical minerals, including rare earth elements, a central policy to counter China. The Trump administration said this year it will deploy nearly USD 12

The Nifty Metal index hit a new high of 12,816 in intra-day trade on Thursday and has bounced back 18% from its previous month low of 10,819.85 touched on March 23, 2026.

Experts say unlocking bauxite resources and building downstream linkages can reduce imports, boost industrial growth, and create jobs in mineral-rich states like Odisha

India is ramping up domestic production of rare earth permanent magnets, crucial for electronics, space, aerospace, defence and electric vehicles, with the first-ever Samarium Cobalt plant becoming operational in 2023, Union Minister Jitendra Singh said on Wednesday. While admitting that over 80 per cent of these magnets are still imported due to limited domestic capacity, Singh, who is MoS Prime Minister's Office, highlighted significant strides made in the last 10-11 years through high prioritisation by the government. "Our present requirement of rare earth permanent magnet is 4,000 tonnes but by the time we reach 2030 and are able to produce 5,000 tonnes indigenously, our requirement would have gone up to 8,000 tonnes," Singh said. He outlined ambitious targets -- 500 tonnes per annum in the first phase, scaling to 2,000 tonnes by 2028 and 5,000 tonnes by 2030. "Prime Minister Modi himself launched it (the Samarium Cobalt plant)... We have initiated processes and we are in the .

The request for proposal seeks applicants to establish integrated Sintered NdFeB Rare Earth Permanent Magnet (REPM) units with a total capacity of 6,000 metric tonnes per annum (MTPA)

Following on a preliminary pact on critical minerals that Japan and India signed last year, Tokyo has expressed interest in the Rajasthan deposits and plans to send experts to the site

The government would receive 16.1 million shares in the rare earths company, along with warrants for a further 17.6 million, both priced at $17.17, the report said

He said that engagements at WEF, Davos reinforce Bharat's growth story, with sustained interest from global leaders in partnering with India across multiple sectors

China has begun clearing export licences for rare earth magnets to India, easing supply disruptions for automakers and EV makers after months of delays caused by trade curbs

Amid the rising global demand for rare earth elements, a parliamentary panel has urged the government to bolster IREL (India) with focused budgetary support to prioritise exploration and mining of the critical mineral. IREL (India), a central public sector enterprise under the Department of Atomic Energy (DAE), is the only company in India that is engaged in the mining of rare earth ores and refining them into rare earth oxides. The Standing Committee on Coal, Mines, and Steel, in its latest report, also asked the government to formulate strategies for their domestic availability, identification, exploration, and economic viability, aiming to bring down the country's heavy import dependence. Rare earth minerals broadly are a group of metallic elements that are difficult and expensive to extract and process because they are rarely found in high concentrations. They play a critical role in clean energy applications like wind energy turbines, hybrid car batteries, electric motors, sol

A Parliamentary Panel has flagged delays between mine auctions and operationalisation and has urged the government to explore setting up an inter-ministerial committee to monitor the post-auction progress for mineral and critical mineral projects. The panel also stressed that critical mineral projects should be given priority in necessary statutory clearances. "Although policy initiatives and simplification of exploration norms for auction of mineral blocks are in place, the Committee feels that the lengthy process of regulatory clearances, inadequate exploration, forest clearance requirement even at the exploration stage, considerable time lag between auction of mines and their operationalisation, etc., needs to be looked into," it said. The observations were made by the Standing Committee on Coal, Mines and Steel in its latest report titled "Self-Reliance in Minerals and Metals". "In view of these persistent challenges, the committee desires to explore the possibility of setting

Among other metal shares, GMDC soared 7 per cent, while NALCO gained 4 per cent and was seen trading near its life-time in trades on Friday.

The framework seeks to ensure that mineral-producing countries, particularly in the Global South, derive maximum benefit from their resources, moving beyond mere raw material exports

Backed by up to 50 million pounds in new funding, the strategy seeks to ensure no more than 60 per cent of the UK's supply of any one critical mineral comes from a single country by 2035

US President Donald Trump hosted leaders of five Central Asian countries at the White House on Thursday as he intensifies his hunt for rare earth metals needed for high-tech devices, including smartphones, electric vehicles and fighter jets. Trump and the officials from Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan held bilateral meetings in the Oval Office before having a working dinner. These nations were once home to the ancient Silk Road connecting East and West, Trump said, while noting that sadly, previous American presidents neglected this region completely". He added, I understand the importance of this region but a lot of people don't know that. The White House visits followed Trump managing at least a temporary thaw with Chinese leader Xi Jinping on differences between the United States and China over the export of rare earth elements, a key point of friction in their trade negotiations. Early last month, Beijing expanded export restrictions over vital

The exceptional loss included a write off of ₹1,407 crore in Talwandi Sabo Power (TSPL), a wholly owned subsidiary of Vedanta, in pursuant to a Supreme Court order dated in August 19

Despite the drop in profit, Vedanta's total income rose to ₹40,464 crore from ₹38,934 crore in the corresponding quarter of the previous fiscal

India's copper demand grew by 9.3 per cent to 1,878 kilo tonnes (KT) in FY25 due to robust economic progress and increasing adoption of the metal across critical sectors, a report released on Wednesday said. The International Copper Association India (ICA India) released its copper demand report for FY2025. The country's copper demand was 1,718 kilo tonne in FY24. India's continued emphasis on large-scale infrastructure projects, building construction, clean energy transition and emerging technologies has accelerated demand for key industrial materials, with copper emerging as a critical enabler across these sectors, the report said. The building construction and infrastructure segments remained primary growth drivers registering 11 per cent and 17 per cent year-on-year growth respectively. The renewable energy sector achieved one of the highest annual capacity additions in FY2025, while the consumer durables sector saw a 19 per cent increase, driven by strong sales of air ...

The government is working on measures to improve supply of rare earth minerals, including negotiating trade pacts with Chile and Peru, promoting domestic exploration, and engaging startups in recycling and processing, Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal said on Friday. Critical or rare earth minerals such as copper, lithium, nickel, and cobalt are essential raw materials which have applications in various industries ranging from electronic goods to fighter jets. These minerals also fuel the growth of rapidly growing clean energy technologies, including electric vehicles and battery manufacturing. Countries like Chile, Peru and Australia have reserves of these minerals. India already has implemented a trade pact with Australia and is negotiating with South American nations Chile and Peru. The Indian team is visiting the two South American countries for the next round of trade talks. "Look at Chile and Peru, think about it. Why am I doing FTA with them in the first place? It