Govt to auction 10 offshore critical mineral blocks in 2-3 months

New Delhi: The government is aiming to auction the first set of offshore critical mineral blocks in the next two-three months, said Mines Secretary VL Kantha Rao on Wednesday. Inaugurating a one-day workshop on offshore critical mineral mining, Rao said that the government has identified 10 offshore blocks with deposits of construction sand, lime-mud and poly-metallic nodules containing Cobalt. “We have identified 10 such spots and we are in consultation with ministries like Defence and New and Renewable Energy and Earth Sciences to make it happen,” said the Mines Secretary.

PSU Watch is now on Whatsapp Channels. Click here to join

“We will give them (bidders) two-three years to do exploration, studies, and mining,” said Rao.

‘World looking at India for critical mineral mining rules & regulations’

“The government has given a mandate that we have to take up offshore mining in a big way, because it has not happened in the last few decades,” Rao said. “We are one of the pioneers in offshore mining, because not much is happening in many countries. There are hardly four-five countries, where offshore mining is happening, including the Netherlands, UK, and South Africa. And they are also looking at us for the rules and regulations,” said the top bureaucrat.

Offshore critical mineral mining

Some of the offshore blocks identified by the Ministry of Mines are in the exclusive economic zone of India, beyond territorial water (12 nautical miles). Therefore, the Mines Ministry has sought comments from other ministries regarding the availability of these blocks for auction.

There are four stages of mineral exploration — reconnaissance (G4), preliminary exploration (G3), general exploration (G2), and detailed exploration (G1). According to the ministry’s draft rules for the auction of offshore critical mineral blocks, only G2 level blocks can be considered for auction or grant of production lease. For the grant of composite licence, the block needs to be explored up to G4 level.

Offshore mining of minerals involves retrieving mineral deposits from the deep seabed, below 200 metres. The demand for critical minerals is on the rise the world over with an expansion in clean energy technologies.

(PSU Watch– India's Business News centre that places the spotlight on PSUs, Bureaucracy, Defence and Public Policy is now on Google News. Click here to follow. Also, join PSU Watch Channel in your Telegram. You may also follow us on Twitter here and stay updated.)