India launches first-ever private auction for minerals

NEW DELHI, November 30, 2023 – India has opened the first tranche of its new minerals auction with 20 concessions on offer, the government announced on Wednesday.

The 20 blocks cover eight states, including Bihar, Gujarat, Jharkhand, Odisha, Tamil Nadu, Uttar Pradesh, and Chhattisgarh, and the Union Territory of Jammu & Kashmir.

These include the significant discovery of 5.9 million tonnes of lithium reserves in Jammu & Kashmir in July 2023, the first known lithium reserves in the country.

While most blocks are for composite exploration, four are to be licensed solely as mining leases.

The auction will be held online and will end on February 20, 2024.

This is India’s first minerals auction following an amendment by the mining ministry to allow private sector participation.

The auctioned 20 blocks are part of 100 planned by the government to enhance its mining capacities with a focus on minerals such as nickel, titanium, vanadium, tungsten and lithium — the latter of which is used in batteries for electric vehicles.

According to India’s Minister of Parliamentary Affairs, Coal and Mines Pralhad Joshi, the government will announce acquisitions of lithium blocks in Australia and Argentina in the following months.

Indian state-owned electricity giant NTCP and mining company Coal India have shown interest in acquiring lithium reserves in Australia, Reuters reported earlier this year.

“The government of India has taken an appropriate step at the appropriate time to boost the mining, refining and chemical processing sector for battery materials to support the cathode, anode and electrolyte manufacturing industry for upcoming battery giga factories in India,” said Debi Prasad Dash, executive director of India Energy Storage Alliance and secretary of India Battery Manufacturing & Supply Chain Council.

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