The government of the western Indian coastal state of Goa has approved the next auction of 2.17 million mt of iron ore lying idle at mine sites and stockyards in the state, government officials said on Friday, January 14.
The officials said that the 27th auction of idle iron ore stocks will be held on January 19, to be conducted on the platform of the government-run trading firm MSTC Limited.
The 26th auction of such idle iron ore stocks held in August 2021 found buyers for only 810,000 mt against the total volumes of 1.57 million mt put on offer.
Iron ore mining in Goa was halted in 2018 following a verdict of India’s Supreme Court which held that renewal of mining leases outside of the auction process was illegal and since then large amounts of iron ore have been lying idle at various pitheads and stockyards across the state.