Bids for 20 critical mineral blocks soon

New Delhi, November 14

The Ministry of Mines is in the process of auctioning 20 blocks of critical minerals, including lithium and graphite, in the next two weeks, Mines Secretary VL Kantha Rao said on Tuesday.

Talking to mediapersons after inaugurating the mining pavilion “Connecting Beyond Mining” at the India International Trade Fair (IITF) 2023 here, Rao said indigenous technology will be explored for mining and processing of critical minerals.

“Now we are almost ready to issue the auction notice and in two weeks’ time we will be issuing an auction notice for auctioning about 20 blocks that are related to critical minerals like lithium and graphite,” the Secretary said. The secretary said 10-12 players in the country have the technology to produce and process critical minerals.

Post this auction notice, he said, a workshop will be organised in which all the stakeholders will be brought together and a national-level strategy on mining and processing of critical minerals will be made.