Page 3 - Mining

JSW Group interested in acquiring critical mineral blocks: Chairman Jindal

Steel to Infrastructure JSW Group is interested in participating in auction of critical minerals, its Chairman Sajjan Jindal said on Wednesday. Jindal, who made the remarks at an event in Mumbai, said the move will help in backward integration of the group's plans for new energy vehicles. "We will certainly participate when the mining auction comes up," he said while replying to a question. The comments come a month after the JSW Group announced signing an agreement with the Odisha government to set up an integrated electric vehicle (EV) manufacturing facility in the state, entailing an investment of Rs 40,000 crore. Once completed, the project will mark JSW Group's foray into the automobile space. Union Mines Minister Pralhad Joshi has launched the second tranche of the auction of critical and strategic mineral blocks. The government also plans to launch the first tranche of offshore minerals auctions by June-July this year.

Cairn gave up right to claim interest: Vedanta to appeal against Sebi order

Billionaire Anil Agarwal's Vedanta Ltd on Wednesday said it will appeal against Sebi levying Rs 77.6 crore penalty for delay in paying dividends to its erstwhile shareholder, Cairn Energy, saying the UK firm had given up its right to claim interest when it settled a retrospective tax demand with the government. Sebi had on Tuesday ordered Vedanta to pay Rs 77.62 crore to Scottish explorer Cairn and also barred the firm's entire board, including his brother Navin and daughter Priya, from accessing the capital market for the same. "Vedanta Ltd will appeal the Sebi order before the appropriate forum," the firm said in a statement. Vedanta had in 2011 bought Cairn Energy's majority stake in its Indian arm, Cairn India Ltd. Cairn continued to hold a minority stake in Cairn India, which was subsequently merged into its parent and Mumbai-listed Vedanta Ltd. In 2014, the Income Tax department gave it powers to levy taxes retrospectively, to seek Rs 10,247 crore in capital gains tax from th

Vedanta told to pay Cairn Rs 77.6 crore, Board barred from market

The Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) in a 76-page order said Vedanta must make the payment within 45 days or face further action

CBI summons SP chief Akhilesh Yadav on Thursday in illegal mining cases

The CBI has summoned Samajwadi Party president and former Uttar Pradesh chief minister Akhilesh Yadav as a witness for questioning on Friday in illegal mining cases, five years after registering the case. In a notice issued under section 160 of CrPC, the agency asked him to appear before it on February 29 in connection with the case registered in 2019, officials said. The section allows a police officer to summon witnesses in a probe. The case pertains to the issuance of mining leases in alleged violation of e-tendering process. The Allahabad High Court had ordered the probe. It is alleged that public servants allowed illegal mining during 2012-16, when Yadav was chief minister, and illegally renewed licences despite a ban by the National Green Tribunal on mining. It is alleged that the officers allowed theft of minerals, extorted money from lease-holders and drivers. The CBI had filed seven preliminary enquiries in 2016 on the directions of the Allahabad High Court to probe the

Vedanta eyes $6 bn Ebitda in FY25, reiterates guidance on profit targets

Mining conglomerate Vedanta Group is eyeing USD 6 billion of pre-tax profits in the next financial year and scaling it to USD 7-7.5 billion in the following year on the back of operational efficiencies across businesses. "The building blocks are already in place, and largely under our control for EBITDA augmentation. The increase will be driven by ongoing cost optimization, price increases and volume ramp-up," Ajay Goel, CFO, Vedanta Limited said at a recent analysts' meet. The company is expected to clock nearly USD 5 billion of EBITDA in FY24 (April 2023 to March 2024); adjusting for one-time gains of the Cairn arbitration, the operational EBITDA for FY24 will be USD 4.4 billion. The ambitious EBITDA target of USD 6 billion represents a jump of over 35 per cent. "Most of this growth, nearly 15 per cent, will be driven by cost optimization measures. Price upticks, for example through increase in value added aluminium products, will account for another 8 per cent. Ramp-ups in ...

Vedanta group's Hindustan Zinc forays into strategic mineral exploration

Vedanta group firm Hindustan Zinc on Tuesday announced the formation of new subsidiary Hindmetal Exploration Services Pvt Ltd. The development aims at the company's foray into strategic mineral exploration and diversification of its portfolio. "In line with our vision and with our strategic exploration objective to upgrade Ore Reserves and Mineral Resources (R&R), the company has incorporated Hindmetal Exploration Services Private Limited, a wholly owned subsidiary of Hindustan Zinc Ltd, with an objective to explore, discover, develop and tap mineral resources," Hindustan Zinc said in a regulatory filing. The arm was incorporated on Monday, it said. In the last decade, the Centre has introduced significant transformational reforms to open up the mineral sector to ensure its contribution to achieving the national policy goals and also allowed private sector participation in the exploration and mining of critical minerals which were earlier mined only by government companies, it ...

JSW Steel in talks with Australia's Whitehaven for coal mine stake

The miner acquired the Blackwater and Daunia mines from BHP Group in a $4.1 billion deal last October, and expects the acquisition to complete in early April

40 bids received via offline mode for coal mines auction, says govt

The coal ministry on Monday said it has received 40 bids through offline mode for the coal mines put for sale under the ninth round of commercial auction. The government had launched the ninth round of commercial mines auction in December last year. "The Ministry of Coal has received an overwhelming response for the coal mines offered under the ninth round of commercial coal mine auctions. A total of 40 bids have been received in offline form," an official statement said. The ninth tranche of auction was launched for 32 coal mines. The last date for submission of bids was February 19, 2024. The online bids received as part of the auction process along with the offline bids will be opened on Tuesday in presence of bidders. In 2020, Prime Minister Narendra Modi launched the auction process for 41 coal blocks for commercial mining, a move that opened India's coal sector for private players.

Vedanta weighs sale of minority stake holding in Zambian copper assets

Vedanta will remain the majority shareholder in the unit if a minority stake is sold, Griffith said in an interview on the sidelines of an African mining conference in Cape Town

Centre asks GSI, others to increase pace of mineral blocks exploration

The government on Monday asked the Geological Survey of India (GSI) and other agencies to speed up exploration of mineral blocks. Speaking at the 63rd Central Geological Programming Board (CGPB) meeting, Mines Secretary V L Kantha Rao urged state governments to be more aggressive in the implementation of exploration projects through the National Mineral Exploration Trust (NMET) funding. The GSI and other exploration agencies should increase the pace of exploration of critical minerals, Rao said. He further urged stakeholders to make use of geoscience data available in the National Geoscience Data Repository (NGDR) portal for a smooth exploration process, the mines ministry said in a statement. The GSI has formulated about 1,055 scientific programmes for 2024-25, including 392 mineral development projects that have the potential to generate auctionable mineral blocks, in the near future.

Govt to pump Rs 200 cr to explore, develop five lithium blocks in Argentia

India will pump in about Rs 200 crore to explore and develop five lithium mines in Argentia, the government said on Monday. Lithium is the single most important critical mineral for the energy transition; a fundamental component of lithium-ion batteries, which power electric vehicles and battery energy storage systems. An agreement was signed between Khanij Bidesh India Ltd (KABIL), state-owned joint venture formed to scout for minerals overseas, and Catamarca Minera Y Energtica Sociedad Del Estado (CAMYEN), a government-owned mining and energy corporation in the Catamarca province of Argentina to this effect. KABIL is also preparing to set up a branch office at Catamarca, Argentina. The project cost is about Rs 200 crore. "KABIL will start exploration and development of 5 lithium brine blocks viz 1. Cortadera-I, 2. Cortadera-VII, 3. Cortadera-VIII, 4. Cateo-2022- 01810132 and 5. Cortadera-VI covering an area of about 15,703 Hectare, located in the Catamarca province of Argentina,

Conduct 5-day operation to crackdown on mining mafia: Raj CM to officials

Rajasthan Chief Minister Bhajan Lal Sharma on Thursday directed officials to crackdown on the "mining mafia" in the state by conducting a five-day operation. Chairing a meeting of the mines and geology department here, he said preventing illegal mining, especially of gravel, is the priority of his government. Only strict and effective action will curb illegal mining in the state, Sharma stressed. He directed that a five-day joint campaign by police, district administrations, forest department, transport department and mines department be conducted to take strict action against the "mining mafia". Drones and other modern technology should be used to check illegal mining in the state, Sharma said. The chief minister also directed that a task force be formed under the chairmanship of the chief secretary to prevent illegal mining. Only when strict enforcement of the law is ensured, there will be fear among those involved illegal mining, Sharma said. He directed district superintendent

S&P downgrades Anil Agarwal's Vedanta Resources; warns of potential default

Anil Agarwal firm seeks bond holders consent to extend maturities

Landslide in Zambia kills 7 miners digging illegal tunnels, 20 missing

Seven miners were confirmed dead and more than 20 others were missing and presumed dead after heavy rains caused landslides that buried them inside tunnels they had been digging illegally at a copper mine in Zambia, police and local authorities said Saturday. No bodies had yet been retrieved after the landslides late on Thursday night, police said. Many of the victims were believed to have drowned. The miners were digging for copper ore at the Seseli open-pit mine in the copper-belt city of Chingola, around 400 km (250 miles) north of the capital, Lusaka, according to police. The landslides happened some time between 9 pm and 10 pm on Thursday, police said. Police gave names or partial names of seven confirmed victims and said all of the miners in the tunnels are suspected to have died. Neither police nor government officials could say exactly how many miners were trapped in the tunnels, but Chingola District Commissioner Raphael Chumupi told The Associated Press that there were at

Hindalco offers VR tour of sustainable mining initiatives at IITF

Aditya Birla Group firm Hindalco Industries is offering visitors a virtual reality tour of its sustainable mining initiatives at the mining pavilion of the India International Trade Fair (IITF) here. The virtual reality tour at IIFT captures Hindalco's sustainability initiatives, including sustainable land use, waste management, local economic development, biodiversity, water stewardship, health and safety and decarbonisation. Hindalco Industries Ltd is showcasing its array of sustainability initiatives through a special immersive virtual reality presentation at the Mining Pavilion of the India International Trade Fair 2023 being held at Pragati Maidan in the national capital from November 14-27. The Ministry of Mines has set up the mining pavilion for the first time. Seven-year-old Ganeev who was visiting the IITF with her family for the first time found the virtual reality tour quite interesting and informative. "I thoroughly enjoyed it and found it very knowledgeable," she told

Exxon Mobil drilling for lithium in Arkansas, to begin production by 2027

Exxon Mobil on Monday announced it's drilling for lithium in southern Arkansas, with the oil giant expected to begin production of the critical material for electric vehicles by 2027. Exxon in early 2023 acquired the rights to 120000 gross acres (48562 gross hectares) of the Smackover formation in southern Arkansas, considered one of the most prolific lithium resources of its type in North America. Exxon said that by 2030 it aims to produce enough lithium to supply the manufacturing needs more than 1 million electric vehicles. "Lithium is essential to the energy transition, and ExxonMobil has a leading role to play in paving the way for electrification," Dan Ammann, president of ExxonMobil Low Carbon Solutions, said in a news release. Exxon didn't disclose how much it's spending on the project, which is expected to be a boost for a part of Arkansas that has a history as an oil and gas producer. "I'm not being dramatic when I say this has the potential to transform our state," Arkan

India's industrial production growth decelerates to 5.8% in September

The factory output growth measured in terms of the Index of Industrial Production (IIP) had grown by 3.3 per cent in September 2022

Malaysia gives nod to Lynas to process rare earths until March 2026

Malaysia's government said on Tuesday it will allow Lynas Rare Earth to continue to import and process rare earths until March 2026, after the Australian miner proposed a new technology to extract radioactive elements from the waste it produces. The Lynas refinery in Malaysia, its first outside China producing minerals that are crucial to high-tech manufacturing, has been operating in central Pahang state since 2012. But the company has been embroiled in a dispute over radiation from waste accumulating at the plant. The government had ordered Lynas to move its leaching and cracking processes which produce the radioactive waste from Australian ore out of the country by the year's end. It also was not allowed to import raw materials with radioactive elements into the country. Science Minister Chang Lih Kang said the two conditions for renewing Lynas' license had been met after the company proposed a way to extract thorium, the radioactive element, from the raw rare earths it imports

Mineral output index increases by 12.3% to 111.9 in August: Centre

India's mineral output increased by 12.3 per cent in the month of August as compared to the same month a year ago, the Centre on Monday said. The index of mineral production of the mining and quarrying sector for the month of August 2023 at 111.9, is 12.3 per cent higher as compared to the level in the month of August 2022, according to provisional data from the Indian Bureau of Mines (IBM). The cumulative growth for the April- August period over the corresponding period of the previous financial year is 8.3 per cent, the mines ministry said in a statement. In the month of August, the country's coal output was 684 lakh tonnes, lignite production was 28 lakh tonnes, bauxite was 14.28 lakh tonnes among others. Minerals like gold, phosphorite, manganese ore and iron ore showed positive growth. "Minerals showing negative growth include bauxite, zinc conc, lignite and lead.

Cabinet approves royalty rates for mining of Lithium, Niobium REE

To ensure consistency, the Ministry of Mines has devised a formula for calculating the ASP of these minerals, which will aid in setting bidding parameters