Page 2 - Metals & Minerals

Govt working on steps to improve supply of rare earth minerals: Goyal

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

China restricts rare earth exports, threatening US semiconductor, AI growth

China accounts for 90% of all rare earth elements processing, a figure that rises to 99% for heavy rare earth processing

Sona Comstar MD Singh flags magnet quality issues under PLI scheme

During the meeting, Singh raised concerns about the quality of magnets that will be produced in India under the scheme

India needs to be self-reliant in rare earth element production: Prez Murmu

President Droupadi Murmu said on Friday that India should achieve self-reliance in production of rare earth elements, given the current geopolitical situation. This would help India achieve its target of becoming a developed nation and play an important role in ensuring the security of the country, Murmu said while speaking at the National Geoscience Awards 2024 here. "Seeing the current geopolitical situation it is very important that India becomes self-reliant in production of rare earth elements," she said. These elements are not rare because their availability is scarce but the process to identify these elements is very complicated, she said, adding that the development of indigenous technique will help complete this complicated process. President Murmu said this is the age of artificial intelligence, semiconductior, and clean energy technology. Rare earth elements are essential in smartphones, electric vehicles (EVs), and renewable energy technologies. Rare Earth Elements (R

Singapore seeks African carbon credits as rivals chase critical minerals

The Southeast Asian city-state aims to increasingly tap African countries for carbon credits as part of a drive to boost trade with the continent and meet its own net zero ambitions

Centre to incentivise domestic production of rare earths: Kumaraswamy

The government is preparing fiscal incentives to encourage domestic production of rare earth magnets in the face of recent disruptions caused in their supply, currently dominated by China, Union Minister H D Kumaraswamy said on Friday. The minister for Heavy Industries and Steel also said a scheme is in the works to provide "targeted support" to the industry for its capital as well as operational expenditure, which would help bridge cost gaps, offer relief from high tariffs on key equipment and ensure continuity of supply in the face of rising global restrictions. "The ministry is actively addressing vulnerabilities in critical raw materials. Recognising that rare earth magnets are central to EV motors and currently dominated by Chinese supply, we are preparing fiscal incentives to encourage domestic production. "We are working on a scheme aimed at powering India's participation in global value chains through targeted support for both capital expenditure and operational expenditure

Ashapura Minechem hits new high; stock zooms 101% from March low

In the past two weeks, the stock price of this smallcap industrial products company has rallied 26 per cent.

Critical mineral blocks auction: A snapshot of the progress so far

Since the launch of auctions for critical minerals in 2023, the government has offered 81 blocks across five tranches

Centre to set up mineral trading exchange, says Union Minister Kishan Reddy

Union Coal and Mines Minister G Kishan Reddy on Saturday said the Centre would set up a mineral trading exchange similar to the London Metal Exchange. In a media interaction here, he said the mineral exchange would be established as per the norms of SEBI. "Like the London Metal Exchange, we are going to set up a mineral exchange in India," he said. The proposed mineral exchange is expected to facilitate better price discovery for industries, traders and other stakeholders. Mineral exchange was made part of recently-passed legislation and the guidelines concerned would be issued soon, he said. Asked if the US tariffs would have any impact on the domestic coal industry, he said it would not be much. He further said the country exports aluminium to America in a small measure. Reddy said the government had reduced coal imports substantially, saving foreign exchange to the tune of Rs 60,000 crore. The steel-makers in the country have boilers built for using good quality imported coa

Govt targets critical minerals security through mining law changes

The proposal, aimed at securing long-term access to resources like lithium, copper, cobalt, and rare earth elements, comes amid tightening global supply and rising geopolitical risks

Only nominated firms to mine offshore uranium, thorium under new norms

The new rules notified under the Offshore Areas Mineral (Development and Regulation) Act, 2002, are aimed at unlocking India's offshore atomic mineral potential

NLC India exploring possibilities to source rare earth from overseas: CMD

State-owned NLC India Ltd is exploring possibilities to source rare earth element from overseas and the company has also begun preliminary talks for lithium blocks in Mali, West Africa and for copper and cobalt mines in the Republic of the Congo, its CMD Prasanna Kumar Motupalli said. The remarks came amid China's recent curbs on exports of rare earth elements, impacting the global supply chain of the critical mineral which has diverse usage ranging from the manufacturing of home appliances to electric vehicles. In an interview to PTI, Motupalli said that both mines and coal ministries have very clearly communicated to the Navratna firm to "aggressively" explore and mine both critical mineral blocks and rare earth elements. "We are in touch with the Ministry of Mines and Ministry of Coal, and based on the advice from them we have started taking initial steps of some of the mines abroad. So as on date we are studying some lithium mines in Mali and copper and cobalt mines in the ...

Quartz exports decline 34% in FY25 as China slashes import volumes

After three years of steady growth, India's quartz exports slipped to 916 kt in FY25 due to a sharp drop in demand from China, which had been the top buyer in FY24

China built a rare earth empire-India is still stuck in the mines

Despite hosting the world's third largest known reserves of rare earths, these critical minerals will remain a critical challenge for India

Tech hegemony: Now, China's rare-earth experts face travel restrictions

This move by China means Indian auto companies will be left with only one option - to import the full motors powered by the magnets - which will only increase the cost of the vehicle

Quad launches critical minerals initiative to counter China's dominance

The Quad grouping has launched an ambitious initiative to ensure a stable supply of critical minerals under a broader goal to strengthen economic security amid concerns over China's coercive tactics, including price manipulation and restrictions on the export of the vital resources. The decision on rolling out the "Quad Critical Minerals Initiative" was announced after a meeting of foreign ministers of the member nations of the grouping in the US capital on Tuesday. Critical minerals such as lithium, nickel and graphite are considered vital for high-end technology products, including electric vehicles (EVs), drones, and battery storage. China has been a dominant player in the critical minerals supply chain globally. The meeting was attended by External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Australian Foreign Minister Penny Wong and her Japanese counterpart Takeshi Iwaya. In a joint statement, the Quad foreign ministers expressed "deep concern" over the

India sends geologists to Zambia to explore copper, cobalt deposits

The exploration project will last for three years and most of the analysis will be done in laboratories in India

Brics to take up rare earth export curb issue at leaders summit in July

China controls around 70 per cent of global rare earth elements (REE) mining output and accounts for about 90 per cent of the world's processing and refining of rare earth elements

Rare earth curbs to affect ICE vehicles as well: Automobile industry

China accounts for about 70 per cent of global rare earth mining and nearly 90 per cent of rare earth magnet production, giving it overwhelming leverage in this segment

Indian auto delegation yet to leave for China for rare earth magnets talks

Indian Auto industry representatives are yet to leave for China to expedite the import of rare earth magnets as the delegation is still awaiting a formal go-ahead from the Chinese commerce ministry for a meeting, as per industry sources. Around 40-50 industry executives have received visas last month, but are still awaiting a formal nod from the Chinese authorities for the meetings on the matter. Staring at shortages, the domestic automobile industry has also sought government support in expediting approvals from China to import rare earth magnets. "They (Chinese authorities) have not given any appointment so far, so the delegation is yet to leave. Situation is bad as not even a single license has been issued to us so far," a source told PTI. If the situation remains like this, the domestic automobile industry will be staring at shortages resulting in significant production losses, the source added. The domestic auto industry is forced to take steps as the Chinese government has p