24 MAY 2016Business Standard
L&T on verge of bagging bauxite deposits in Odisha
Edited by : AL CIRCLE
2 min read
Diversified conglomerate Larsen & Toubro (L&T) is on its way to secure the Kutrumali and Sijimali bauxite deposits in Odisha, with combined reserves of over 300 million tonne. L&T holds the prospecting license (PL) over the twin deposits and is entitled to bag the mining lease (ML) under the new Mines and Minerals (Development & Regulation) MMDR Act.
The Odisha government is sending its final compliance to the Union Mines Ministry on L&T's bid for the mines.
“We have clarified to the mines ministry that there is no overlapping of the Kutrumali and Sijimali leases with any of the mines held by state-owned Odisha Mining Corporation (OMC). The state government has also backed L&T's bid for ML over the deposits as they are a subsisting PL holder,” said a senior government official.
L&T had won PL for Sijimali and Kutrumali bauxite mines in 1992. But the PL had expired two years later, after which the state government had denied ML to L&T since it had no end-use plant.
In 2005, L&T through a joint venture with Dubai Aluminium (Dubal), had proposed a INR 30,000-crore aluminium complex comprising three million tonne per annum (mtpa) alumina refinery at Rayagada, 1.5 mtpa smelter plant and a captive power plant (CPP).
The ultimate capacity of three mtpa of the proposed alumina refinery will require bauxite of nine mtpa, considering three tonne of bauxite for one tonne of alumina. This requirement will be met partly from Kutrumali (three mtpa) and partly from Sijimali (six mtpa).
Though a special purpose vehicle (SPV) called Raykal Aluminium was formed for the purpose, the project has so far remained a non-starter.
Seven years later, in 2012, when Dubal walked out of the SPV, Vedanta Aluminium (now Vedanta) bought 24 per cent stake in the project.
The Odisha government is sending its final compliance to the Union Mines Ministry on L&T's bid for the mines.
“We have clarified to the mines ministry that there is no overlapping of the Kutrumali and Sijimali leases with any of the mines held by state-owned Odisha Mining Corporation (OMC). The state government has also backed L&T's bid for ML over the deposits as they are a subsisting PL holder,” said a senior government official.
L&T had won PL for Sijimali and Kutrumali bauxite mines in 1992. But the PL had expired two years later, after which the state government had denied ML to L&T since it had no end-use plant.
In 2005, L&T through a joint venture with Dubai Aluminium (Dubal), had proposed a INR 30,000-crore aluminium complex comprising three million tonne per annum (mtpa) alumina refinery at Rayagada, 1.5 mtpa smelter plant and a captive power plant (CPP).
The ultimate capacity of three mtpa of the proposed alumina refinery will require bauxite of nine mtpa, considering three tonne of bauxite for one tonne of alumina. This requirement will be met partly from Kutrumali (three mtpa) and partly from Sijimali (six mtpa).
Though a special purpose vehicle (SPV) called Raykal Aluminium was formed for the purpose, the project has so far remained a non-starter.
Seven years later, in 2012, when Dubal walked out of the SPV, Vedanta Aluminium (now Vedanta) bought 24 per cent stake in the project.
Unlock full access – sign up for FREE.
Key benefits
Find exclusive data-driven insights and in-depth analysis
Get our daily newsletter delivered straight to your inbox
Access real-time and historical price trends from global indices
Post and respond to latest business leads
Stay ahead with alerts on learning tools
...and so much more!SIGN UP / LOGIN
Previous article
CBIX eases, Malaysia exports from existing bauxite stockpiles
Next articleAustralia faces increasingly stiff competition in the China bauxite market
Grow with
AL Circle
