In a major boost to get closed mines back into operation, the government of the southwestern Indian state of Karnataka has decided to e-auction leasing for 11 iron ore mines in February 2016, a provincial government official said on Thursday, December 3.
The official said that the government has already issued a notification for e-auction of the 11 iron ore mines, 31 months after they were closed down following a Supreme Court order. New leases for these mines will be e-auctioned to end-users in industries like sponge iron, steel and pelletization plants, the official said. The combined reserves of these mines stand at 127 million mt.
End-users forming a consortium will not be permitted to participate at the auction and only individual companies in specified sectors will be eligible.
Although it has not been confirmed, market sources said that JSW Steel which has a steel mill in Karnataka, ArcelorMittal which has plans for a 6 million mt capacity steel mill in the state, and pellet-manufacturer KIOCL Limited will be among the possible bidders for the mines.