 "Hindustan Copper plans to increase mine production capacity to 12.2 MTPA")
State-owned Hindustan Copper Ltd (HCL) is implementing expansion projects to increase mine production capacity to 12.2 million tonnes per annum (MTPA), its CMD Ghanshyam Sharma said on Thursday.
The move will boost domestic production of copper and reduce dependence on imports.
The company achieved ore production of 3.78 million tonnes in FY'24 against 3.35 MT in FY'23, registering a rise of 13 per cent.
Speaking during the 57th Annual General Meeting, Sharma who is holding the addition charge of Chairman and Managing Director, said that the ongoing capacity expansion project i.e. development of underground mine below the existing open cast mine at Malanjkhand Copper Project (MCP) will augment the ore production capacity from 2.5 MTPA to 5 MTPA.
The ore production from open cast mine has now exhausted and underground mine is operating below existing open cast mine leaving some barrier pillar.
The project has achieved seamless transition from open cast to underground mine in 2023-24 with ramping up of ore production from Malanjkhand Underground mine to 22.48 lakh tonne which is about 60.8 per cent increase with respect to 2022-23.
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The proposed expansion of mines at Rajasthan-- Khetri and Kolihan mines--will increase ore production capacity from existing one to three MTPA.
The proposed expansion of Surda Mine in Jharkhand will augment its production capacity from 0.4 MTPA to 0.9 MTPA.
Hindustan Copper Ltd under the administrative control of the mines ministry of Mines, is engaged in mining of copper ore and owns all the operating mining lease of copper ore and also the only integrated producer of refined copper (vertically integrated company).