Odisha to auction 12 mineral blocks in November

The Odisha government hopes to put 12 mineral blocks to auction in November this year. Among the blocks enlisted for auctions in the first phase include five iron ore blocks, one bauxite block and the rest being manganese ore, dolomite and limestone blocks.

"The DGPS (Differential Global Positioning System) survey is likely to be commissioned by the end of this months. We hope that auctions of 12 identified mineral blocks would commence in November", said Deepak Mohanty, director (mines).

Steel units that have invested substantially on their projects in Odisha have sought preference in the upcoming iron ore auctions.

According to Section 6 (3) of Mineral Auction Rules, 2015 under Mines and Minerals (Development & Regulation) MMDR Amendment Act, 2015, state governments are empowered to decide the end use of a mineral lease.

 

The auction platform is set to be provided by central PSU MSTC Ltd. SBI Capital Markets Ltd (SBI Caps), a fully owned subsidiary of State Bank of India is the transaction advisor for conducting mineral auctions. The transaction advisor would assist the state government in fixing floor price for auctions.

To kickstart the auction process, the state government has already formed a committee under its development commissioner U N Behera. The committee's mandate is to monitor the preparatory work relating to auction of major mineral concessions including conduct of DGPS survey and preparation of tender documents.

Realising the need for exploration, the state government has already come out with a dedicated policy on mineral exploration. Central government agencies like Geological Survey of India (GSI) and Mineral Exploration Corporation Ltd (MECL) were being roped in by the state to carry out exploration work of the identified mineral blocks.

According to the notified Auction Rules, 2015, the state governments will have the discretion to reserve particular mine or mines for any particular end use. Auctions can be conducted only through an online electronic platform. The state government may utilise any online platform which meets the minimum technical and security requirements as specified in the guidelines for compliance to quality requirements of e-procurements issued by the standardisation testing and quality certification directorate under department of information technology.

The Union government has proposed an upfront payment of 0.5 per cent of value of resources by companies, who secure licence for mining major minerals like iron ore through auction under the new law.