India mulls risky tweaking of laws defining illegal mining

In view of a spate of court-imposed penalties for illegal mining, the Indian government is working on tweaking the definition of ‘illegal mining’ risking a political and legal minefield. While no... 

NLC India appoints Adani subsidiary as MDO for Odisha coal blocks

NLC India (formerly Neyveli Lignite Corporation) has signed up Adani Enterprises’ subsidiary Talabira Odisha Mining Private as the mine-developer operator (MDO) for the Talabira II and Talabira... 

Coal India starts supplies to power plants under auctioned linkages

State-owned miner Coal India Limited (CIL) is expected to supply an estimated 27-million tons a year to thermal power companies through long-term supply agreements secured through bidding.... 

Indian iron-ore production and imports to rise in current FY

Indian iron-ore production during the current financial year is expected to have grown over the previous year, and imports too are showing tentative signs of a rise. According to preliminary... 

Only two Indian provinces ready for auction of expiring licences

With barely 24 months left before 348 mining leases expire, only two Indian states have been able to submit reports to establish a semblance of readiness to conduct fresh auctions and continuation... 

Goa iron-ore mine closure triggers protests and violence

The closure of iron-ore mines in Goa has triggered violence and widespread law and order problems at the start of the week as miners, families and workers from allied industries unleashed protests... 

Political convergence emerging against commercial coal mining in India

Trade unions operating in the India coal mining industry, irrespective of their political affiliations, are converging in opposing opening up coal mining for private miners, although their modes of... 

Iron-ore mines in Goa close down

Iron-ore mining in the western Indian coastal province of Goa came to a halt on Thursday in accordance with an order issued by the Supreme Court last month. However, even as miners downed shutters... 

India’s Power Ministry seeks higher railway rakes count to avoid coal shortages

With power demand poised to peak during the summer months and coal shortages at thermal power plant looming large, the Power Ministry is seeking a sharp rise in the availability of rakes for coal... 

India, Venezuela to deepen hydrocarbon sector collaboration during Maduro’s New Delhi visit

India and Venezuela will push for deeper engagement and joint ventures (JV) in the hydrocarbon sector during Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro’s visit to New Delhi next month. Despite US... 

ONGC blames policies for Krishna-Godavari delay

India’s national exploration and production (E&P) major, ONGC has said that it would miss the June 2019 deadline to start production from its deep-water Krishna-Godavari (KG) oil and gas block on... 

CIL revives ‘own-your-wagon’ plans

Acknowledging transportation and logistical bottlenecks as large contributing factors to dry fuel shortages at end-users plants, Coal India Limited (CIL) is drawing up plans to acquire its own... 

India sets deadline for commercial coal block auctions

Close on the heels of opening up commercial coal mining for private investors last week, the Indian government has set a 2019 deadline for completing the auction process. While government officials... 

Indian govt pushing for JVs to acquire overseas battery mineral assets

The Indian government is considering pushing government-owned mining and mineral processing companies to form joint ventures (JV) to acquire strategic assets overseas. Senior official say that JVs... 

Coal India unlikely to face significant competition from commercial coal miners

Giving the final green light, the Cabinet Committee of Economic Affairs (CCEA) of the Indian government on Tuesday approved the methodology of auction of coal blocks to private miners, but analysts... 

Indian captive coal mines to achieve 105Mt production by 2021

Indian coal production from captive blocks allocated to thermal power plants has been estimated at 105-million tons a year by 2021/22, up from about 37-million tons a year at present, according to... 

Indian mineral royalty rate revision on the cards

Signaling an imminent revision in royalties payable, barring coal, lignite and sand, the Indian government has constituted a study group to review existing rates, recommend any revision and suggest... 

India approves policy for auction of small oil, gas fields

India’s Union Cabinet has approved the second round of the Discovered Small Field Policy, paving the way for 60 small oilfields to be put up for auction. These discovered small and unmonetised... 

No need for new coal block auction, says India’s largest coal producer

espite thermal power plants across India reeling from shortages of dry fuel and the government readying to open up the coal sector to private miners, State-owned Coal India Limited (CIL) does not... 

Indian govt-owned thermal power companies allowed to swap coal

To ensure optimal use of coal blocks allocated to government-owned thermal power companies, the Indian government will now allow swapping of coal between two such companies. The swap will be... 

Deadline proposed for new exploration on expiring mineral leases in India

In a bid to derisk mineral production, the Indian government is working on amending rules and on setting a deadline for miners to complete exploration on the mineral leases that are set to expire... 

Coal India diversification strategy moves ahead

Coal India Limited (CIL) will complete the formation of a separate independent business to undertake diversified mining before the end of the current financial year. According to company sources,... 

Leeway proposed for exploration projects in existing oil and gas fields

The Indian government is likely to permit existing oil and gas field operators to undertake new exploration projects within their existing licensing area even as it goes ahead to woo new investors... 

Indian minerals companies consider entering mining services

In view of the Indian government’s proposal to implement paradigm shifts in the mining policy regime, several domestic mineral processing companies have started toying with options of entering... 

Indian iron-ore benchmark price proves elusive even as clamour mounts to check rising prices

Even as clamour mounts among various segments of India’s steel industry over a shortage of iron-ore availability and the high prices of domestic raw material, evolving an acceptable benchmark price... 

India likely to scrap import duties on coking coal

The Indian government is likely to scrap import duties on coking coal through the National Budget 2018/19, which is scheduled to be placed before Parliament on February 1. The Steel Ministry has... 

NMDC seeks fresh mining lease in Odisha to up iron-ore production

India’s largest iron-ore miner, government-owned NMDC, has sought new mining leases from Odisha to help it produce 45-million tons in 2018/19, up from the expected 35-million tons by the end of... 

India to revamp coal block auction process

India’s Coal Ministry has initiated a revamp of the coal block auction process following the cancellation of two bidding rounds last year, owing to a poor response from non-power companies. The... 

India mulls incentives policy for adoption of enhanced recovery methods at oil-, gasfields

The Indian government is working on a policy framework to offer incentives for the adoption of enhanced oil recovery (EOR) and enhanced gas recovery (EGR) methods at all operating oil- and... 

India resumes oil and gas block auctions after eight-year hiatus

India will on Thursday hold its first oil and gas auction in eight years, with 55 blocks up for grabs. The auction will also mark the first time that such assets will be allocated under the newly... 

India to review coal blocks identified for allocation

India’s Coal Ministry will undertake a fresh review of 117 coal blocks that were identified in 2014 for development. A committee, comprising representatives of the Coal Ministry, government-owned... 

India’s draft national mineral policy proposes exploration incentives

India’s Mines Ministry has unveiled the draft National Mineral Policy (NMP) 2018, which proposes to offer mineral exploration companies the right of first refusal at the auction of any area... 

India’s mineral output at risk as leases are set to expire

With 348 noncoal mining leases set to expire in 2020 and a lack of preparedness by provincial governments in holding fresh auctions, the country’s mineral production in the next few years is at... 

Coal India to chase higher production target despite falling short on 2017/18 goal

Despite trends indicating that Coal India Limited (CIL) has missed its production target in the current financial year, the Indian government has fixed a higher target for the country’s largest... 

Odisha rules out extension of deadline for payment of illegal mining penalty

With the Supreme Court set deadline of December 31, to recover dues and penalties for illegal mining in eastern province of Odisha fast approaching, the government has ruled out any extension of... 

India faces surge in coal imports over next three months

Indian coal imports is likely to gain further momentum during the next three months, reversing a falling trend seen early in the financial year as more user industries are planning to up inward... 

India’s national oil, gas firms likely to get higher prices for gas from ‘difficult’ projects

India’s Petroleum and Natural Gas Ministry has forwarded a proposal for approval of the Union Cabinet that will more than double the price of natural gas produced by national oil, gas exploration... 

Indian policy body stresses need to widen mineral exploration

The National Institute for Transformation of India (NITI Aayog), government’s policy advisory body, has called for the proposed National Mineral Policy (NMP) to stimulate more mineral exploration,... 

India’s NLC aborts overseas coal acquisition plans

Indian miner and power utility NLC (formerly Neyveli Lignite Corporation) is seeking a global mine developer and operator to operationalise two of its coal blocks in Odisha. The group is expecting... 

India’s GAIL earmarks $940m for pipeline expansion

Indian oil and gas infrastructure major GAIL India has announced a three-year capital investment of $940-million to add 2 500 km to its existing gas pipeline network across the country. On Monday,...