Indian mining industry seeks tax overhaul

The Indian mining industry has called for a complete overhaul and rationalisation of the tax regime, including scrapping the export tax on iron-ore and bauxite. The Indian mining industry has to... 

India to bring in new mineral policy to align exploration and development projects

The Indian government is expected to put into play a new mineral policy, possibly before the end of August, aimed at a more investor-friendly alignment of exploration and development projects. The... 

After ditching a billion-ton target, Coal India reviews demand and diversification afresh

Formally acknowledging that its one-billion ton a year production target by 2020 will not be met, Coal India Limited (CIL) will undertake a complete review of domestic coal demand and... 

Indian private thermal power plants critical of CIL e-auctions

India’s independent power producers (IPPs) have flayed State-run Coal India Limited’s (CIL) move to push higher sales through e-auctions forcing thermal power plants without fuel linkages to resort... 

New Indian EV battery policy to determine response to Bolivia lithium invite

An Indian government policy advisory body will publish a policy offering subsidies for lithium-based electric vehicle (EV) battery manufacturing, which will determine the response to an invitation... 

Lifting of Karnataka iron-ore restrictions brings miners and consumers into fresh conflict

The Central Empowered Committee (CEC), the body appointed by India’s Supreme Court on all matters related to mining, has recommended lifting restrictions on iron-ore pellet exports from the... 

India’s NMDC bags gold mine through highest bid at auctions

Indian State-run iron-ore miner NMDC will mark its maiden foray into gold mining, having bagged a gold mine in the southern province of Andhra Pradesh. NDMC was able to secure the rights to develop... 

India to shift to revenue sharing contracts at oilfields auction next month

KIndia will usher in a shift to revenue-sharing contracts and scrap production sharing contracts (PSCs) when the government auctions 60 discovered small oilfields next month. The government will... 

India makes tentative moves towards single tax rate for mining sector

India’s Steel Ministry has made the first tentative move towards achieving a single unified tax for the mining industry, subsuming the plethora of taxes currently payable by miners. Ministry... 

India readying to lift ban on gold imports from South Korea

A sharp fall in gold imported into the country during the first quarter of the current financial year has prompted the Indian government to move toward an early lifting of the import ban of the... 

Coal India production picking up but domestic shortage to persist for 2 to 3 years

Green shoots are emerging for State-owned miner Coal India Limited (CIL), with first-quarter coal production and sales increasing, but the government has warned that the domestic coal shortage will... 

India takes step toward improving ease of doing business in mining

In a bid to ease doing business in the mining sector, the Indian government has approved a “single window” bundled clearance of all mandatory approvals for 288 mining leases that are slated to... 

Indian iron-ore exports shifting from fines to pellets

Indian international trade in iron-ore is shifting to more iron-ore pellets, rather than high-grade fines, prompted by changing preferences of overseas buyers. Information and data sourced from... 

Indian captive coal miners likely to be allowed merchant sale

In a forthcoming revamp of coal block auction rules, India’s Coal Ministry is likely to allow captive miners free merchant sales of 25% of production in a step towards blurring the distinction... 

India’s Coal Ministry lays down conditions for thermal power plants to switch linkages

India’s Coal Ministry has directed government coal mining companies to immediately implement rationalisation of coal linkages of independent power producers (IPPs), but has laid down strict... 

ONGC’s Iran investment plans hit by India-US dialogue

Indian national oil exploration and production major ONGC Limited’s protracted investment plans in Iran were receding further into the realm of uncertainty ahead of the upcoming India-US bilateral... 

Indian govt likely to backtrack on splitting GAIL

In an apparent reversal of its earlier plans, the Indian government is toying with a proposal to create more independent verticals within gas infrastructure major, GAIL India, instead of splitting... 

India's options limited as US mounts pressure to stop oil imports from Iran

With the Trump Administration mounting pressures on India to stop crude oil imports from Iran, the option of part barter and part payment in Indian currency to buy Iranian crude, may not work this... 

Indian government tighten screws on illegal miners

In a further clampdown, the Indian government has issued a directive that illegal mining projects will not be regularised unless violators submit to the Supreme Court giving an undertaking of... 

India permits oil exploration agencies to go beyond contracted geographical area

In a bid to offer explorers the option of maximizing production, India’s Petroleum and Natural Gas Ministry has permitted oil and natural gas exploration projects to extend operations beyond... 

India’s SCCL to get new coal blocks, foray into new business verticals

Government miner Singareni Collieries Company Limited (SCCL) has adopted a twin-pronged expansion strategy to take its coal mining operations beyond its present southern Indian geographical... 

CITU raises first red flag on Coal India disinvestment

The Centre for Indian Trade Unions (CITU), the labour arm of Communist Part of India (Marxists), is first off the block in raising opposition to tentative plans for disinvestment of government... 

Indian State-owned firms mandated to acquire overseas lithium and cobalt assets

The Indian government has mandated all State-owned mineral-based companies to pool their resources to acquire lithium and cobalt assets overseas. A rough deadline of March 2019 has been set for... 

South Korea lobbies India to relax gold import restrictions

The review and upgrade of the free trade agreement (FTA) between India and South Korea is facing a speed bump, with the latter seeking a relaxation of gold import restrictions. The South Korean... 

New copper reserves established in India

The Geological Survey of India (GSI) has established indicative reserves of copper in central Indian province of Chhattisgarh. The discovered copper reserves, spread across an estimated 25 km2,... 

Ball set rolling for development of India’s largest coal block in West Bengal

The ball has been set rolling for development of the Deocha-Pachami coal block, which at an estimated two-billion tons of coal is India’s largest. The block has been allocated to the government of... 

India moots allocating coal blocks to oil companies for methanol production

he Indian government has mooted a proposal to allocate coal blocks to national oil refining-marketing companies to produce methanol and to reduce dependency on imported crude oil-based diesel... 

Venezuelan oil crisis threatens to turn ONGC Videsh asset

India’s ONGC Videsh’s, the overseas arm of national oil exploration and production (E&P) major ONGC Limited, hopes of recovering $450-million of past dues has receded into uncertainty. ONGC Videsh... 

Nalco firms up capex for current financial year

Indian government-owned aluminium producer National Aluminium Company Limited (Nalco) has set a capital expenditure (capex) target of $164-million for the 2018/19 financial year. According to an... 

India revives coal sector regulator proposal

With the auction of coal blocks for commercial mining scheduled for next month, the Indian government has revived a proposal to sett up a coal sector regulator. The Coal Ministry has already... 

Coal India to hike daily supplies even as governments differ on coal shortage

On the directive of the Power Ministry, Coal India Limited (CIL) will supply 1.4-million tons a day to all thermal power plants across the country, even as federal and state governments joust over... 

GAIL India seeks to maintain its gas pipeline business

Indian government-owned natural gas importer and infrastructure provider GAIL India has agreed, in principle, to unbundle its gas marketing and pipeline operational business, but only after a... 

Indian govt order on preferential allotment skews coal distribution

The Indian government has directed coal companies to make preferential allotment of coal to government-owned thermal power companies, skewing distribution of dry fuel to the detriment of other... 

Indian thermal power plants reeling from coal shortages

Private and public thermal power plants across India are facing an acute shortage of coal, at a time when rising electricity demand during summer months has sent the spot price of electricity... 

Indian potash imports to fall this year

Indian imports of potash during the current financial year are expected to fall by 5% to 6% in the wake of a government cut in subsidies and the rapid depreciation of the local currency. According... 

India allows power producers to switch coal linkages

The Indian government has announced that private thermal power companies will be allowed to switch coal supply linkages from one coal company to another, but electricity producers are not sure that... 

India reverses decision to privatise small, ageing oil and gas fields

Reversing its earlier decision to privatise small, ageing or underperforming oil and gas fields held by national exploration and production (E&P) companies, the Indian government has now directed... 

US exit of Iran nuclear deal places new risks on $4bn India gas project

US President Donald Trump’s tearing up the multilateral nuclear deal with Iran has thrown a new spanner in works of India’s protracted plans to develop Farzad B offshore gasfields along the Persian... 

Indian iron-ore production at 7-year high, but unsold low-grade stocks pile up

Indian iron-ore production has touched a seven-year high of 210-million tons during 2017/18, but industry is facing a piquant situation of a mounting stockpile of unsold carryover low grade... 

Foreign bidders give India’s maiden open acreage oil, gas block auction a miss

International oil and gas exploration and production (E&P) majors have stayed away from the first round of India’s oil and gas fields auction. According to the sector regulator, Directorate General...