States to reassess ore reserves

With the demand for Indian iron ore soaring in the international market, the top two iron ore rich states in the country "" Orissa and Karnataka ""- intend to carry out a reassessment of the reserves in the coming months.

According to the Indian Bureau of Mines (IBM), Orissa's proven iron ore reserves of all grades are 5,291 million tonnes. Karnataka has the second largest deposits of iron ore "" 3,447 million tonnes. Jharkhand stands third at 3,281 million tonnes. While Orissa largely contributes to the domestic steel industry, nearly 70 per cent of Karnataka's iron ore production goes towards exports. Last fiscal, Karnataka accounted for 30 per cent of India's total iron ore exports (92 million tonnes).

Indian iron ore is commanding an all time high price of $115 per tonne as other top suppliers to China such as Australia and Brazil are missing their targets due to various reasons. The demand for Indian iron ore even prompted the Karnataka government to award contract mining leases to a number of players for a brief period this month.

"We have accurate data on the proven iron ore reserves in the Bellary-Hospet-Sandur belt. However, the iron ore reserves in other parts of the state such as Chitradurga and Tumkur districts are unexplored. We intend to carry out a detailed survey in the coming months in these districts to reassess the state's iron ore reserves," a senior official in Karnataka's Mines and Geology Ministry, told Business Standard.

Small mining companies are operating in Chitradurga and Tumkur districts. The government is not in a position to award fresh mining leases in the Bellary-Hospet-Sandur belt due to several litigations. "Chitradurga and Tumkur districts have both high grade and medium grade iron ore deposits.

We intend to carry out the reassessment of reserves quickly by employing global players," the official added.

Similarly, Orissa plans to reassess iron ore reserves in Sundergarh, Nawarangpur and Keonjhar districts, which have remained untapped. According to Federation of Indian Mineral Industries (FIMI), these areas have huge deposits of iron ore. The decision to reassess the inventory of iron ore resources in the state was taken at meeting chaired by Orissa's Steel & Mines Minister Padmanabha Behera.