From bauxite to critical minerals: NALCO charts a new strategic frontier

The state-owned & Navratna PSU, NALCO, a leading producing company in India, is now exploring diversifying from the traditional bauxite and alumina operations to high-value critical minerals. Indulging in these new explorations will aid the firm to support sectors like electronics, defence, electric vehicles and renewable energy. This push for finding high-value critical minerals directly links the firm’s efforts with India’s push for “Atmanirbhar Bharat”.

NALCO's attempt to secure REE and critical minerals

Brijendra Pratap Singh, the firm's Chairman and Managing Director, in an interview with PTI, confirmed that its bid advisor is undertaking the due diligence for the upcoming domestic auction for rare earth elements (REEs), chromite blocks and magnesium. These materials are essential in magnet manufacturing, which is used in wind turbines, missile guidance systems and EV motors.

Singh commented, "India is heavily dependent on imports for REEs, and securing domestic sources is critical to reduce reliance on China, which dominates around 80 per cent of global REE production."

At present, the bid advisor is conducting an evaluation of mine viability, potential participation in the domestic auction and optimal premiums acquisition.

Must read: Key industry individuals share their thoughts on the trending topics

Besides REE and critical, NALCO acquires lithium

Besides exploration in the domestic boundaries, the firm is also looking to explore taking a stake in an operational lithium mine in Australia via a joint venture between NALCO, Mineral Exploration and Consultancy and Hindustan Cooper Ltd, named as Khanij Bidesh India Ltd (KABIL).

This acquisition ensures India has a minimum offtake of lithium, which directly strengthens domestic supply for projects like renewable energy and EV batteries, especially at a time when the world is facing a major shortage.

To this, Singh further stated, "Due diligence for the lithium stake is ongoing. Lithium is critical for India’s EV push and net-zero commitments. NALCO currently holds a 40 per cent stake in KABIL and plans to potentially raise it to 50 per cent to fund overseas critical mineral acquisitions."

Operational and expansion benefits

Irrespective of diversification being the major agenda, the firm is also putting the optimisation of its existing operations at the core. To this, the CMD is upholding maximised production volume, enhancing customer experience via quality, cost alignment, packaging and further subduing the costs.

NALCO's current focus is also on certain expansion projects, which include commissioning the fifth stream refinery by June 2026, beginning the Pottangi bauxite mines in June 2026 and other future plans of a 0.5 million tonne aluminium smelter and 1,080 MW captive power plant. 

To know more about the global primary aluminium industry 2026 outlook, pre-book the report “Global ALuminium Industry Outlook 2026” at a special price.