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Auction Of Mineral Blocks
The government will on Thursday launch the first round of sale of mineral blocks in offshore areas with 13 mines across the Arabian Sea and Andaman Sea set to be auctioned. These mineral blocks consist of a mix of construction sand, lime mud, and polymetallic nodules. These minerals are critical for infrastructure development, high-tech manufacturing and green energy transition. "The Ministry of Mines will be launching the first-ever tranche of auction of mineral blocks in offshore areas of India on 28th November 2024," an official statement said. The move assumes significance as it will lead to foray into the exploration and development of undersea mineral resources within its offshore area. Offshore areas include territorial waters, continental shelf, exclusive economic zone, and other maritime zones of the country. With the global shift towards technologies reliant on high-demand minerals, such as cobalt, nickel, rare earth elements, and polymetallic nodules, India must develop
The government has scrapped the auction of three critical mineral blocks, including a lithium mine in Jammu and Kashmir, under the third tranche of sale of mines due to a lower-than-required number of bidders. The auction is a part of the government's push towards cleaner alternatives and self-reliance in critical mineral supplies. The three blocks are Salal-Haimna Lithium, Titanium and Bauxite (Aluminous Laterite) Block in Jammu and Kashmir, Muskaniya-Gareriatola-Barwari Potash block in Jharkhand and Kurunjakulam Graphite block in Tamil Nadu. The auction was annulled as the "required number of bids as per the mineral auction rules have not been received", according to a notice by the Mines Ministry. The ministry, on March 14, put on sale seven critical mineral blocks in the third round of auction. The blocks that received less than three bids in the first tranche were notified under this round. These seven blocks pertain to critical minerals such as Glauconite, Graphite, Nickel,
The government on Friday said it has cancelled the auction for 13 of the 20 blocks put on sale in the first tranche of critical minerals as the response was lukewarm. "The e-auction process for 13 mineral blocks was annulled vide notification dated 13 March 2024, wherein no bids were received for two blocks and less than three technically Qualified Bidders (TQB) were there for 11 blocks," the mines ministry said in a statement. Of the 20 blocks put on offer, 56 physical bids and 56 online bids were received for 18 blocks. Of the 11 cancelled blocks, seven mines have been notified for auction under the third round. The second round of auction of six blocks have been completed as per schedule. The decision on kundol, nickel and chromium block in Gujurat will be taken by the designated officer in due course of time, as per the statement. Earlier this month, the government launched the third tranche of auction of critical and strategic minerals. The Centre has launched auction of 38
The government plans to put on sale next month six mineral blocks in the states of Odisha and Rajasthan. Of these six blocks to be auctioned, three are bauxite mines and three are limestone blocks. The three bauxite blocks -- Ballada, Kutrumali and Sijimali -- and two limestone mines -- Garramura and Uskalabgu -- in Odisha are virgin blocks, according to a latest report by the mines ministry. The remaining mine is Nimana-Duniya limestone block in Kota, Rajasthan. The notice inviting tender for all the six blocks was floated in the month of November. Since the amendment to MMDR Act, 1957 in 2015, a total of 216 mineral blocks have been auctioned till November 30 across 10 states. Three mineral blocks -- two limestone and one iron ore -- in Rajasthan and Chhattisgarh were successfully auctioned last month. The government started the process of allocating mineral blocks through auctions in 2015-16. The ministry has expressed hope of auctioning 500 mines by the end of 2024. The Cen
The government plans to auction 22 mineral blocks in Maharashtra, Uttar Pradesh and Goa in November and December. The mines to be auctioned include six iron ore blocks, three blocks each of limestone and gold, two blocks of bauxite, one block each of copper, phosphorite and glauconite, according to the mines ministry. The notice inviting tenders for the blocks were floated in September. While the mines in Maharashtra will be auctioned next month, those in Uttar Pradesh and Goa will be put on sale in December. So far, more than 180 mineral blocks have been put on sale since the system of auctioning of mineral blocks began. The government started the process of allocating mineral blocks through auctions in 2015-16. The ministry has expressed hopes of auctioning 500 mines by the end of 2024. The Centre is aiming to increase the mining sector's contribution to the country's Gross Domestic Product (GDP) to 5 per cent from 2.5 per cent at present. The ministry has also notified the Mi
Seventy two (72) more mineral blocks are set to go under the hammer before the end of this financial year.Twelve mineral rich states- Andhra Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Gujarat, Jharkhand, Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Odisha, Rajasthan, Telangana and Tamil Nadu would put the blocks to auctions. The mineral blocks on offer are those of iron ore, bauxite, manganese, limestone, copper, graphite, dolomite, gold and emerald.The state governments are expected to issue Notice Inviting Tenders (NITs) for the mineral blocks before the end of January. A total of 33 limestone blocks, 12 iron ore, 11 bauxite, five copper, three each of graphite and manganese, two each of gold and emerald and one each of limestone and dolomite blocks are to be auctioned during January-March period.According to the Union mines ministry data, 88 major mineral blocks have been notified by nine states for auctions and 33 blocks have been successfully auctioned (as on January 1, 2018). The mineral resources are ..