Small iron ore miners seek leases abroad

Mumbai : Faced with the government’s emphasis on mineral processing within the country and mine allocations restricted to actual users, smaller iron ore mining companies have started looking for alternative destinations, including Philippines, Thailand and Indonesia. Goa-based H L Nathurmal & Co has applied for 20,000 hectares of mine area in the Philippines, in response to the local government’s invitation to Indian companies. According to Haresh Melwani, CEO, the Philippine government has already approved in principle and a formal okay is awaited. The company has applied for a similar mine area in both Thailand and Indonesia.

Part of the draw is to mine for exports to the Chinese market, where the demand for the steelmaking raw material is very high. According to Melwani, VS Dempo and a couple of other companies are already there. Others like Viraj Profiles have also evinced interest to own a mine either independently or in collaboration with local partners, to mine and export iron ore to Chinese companies. Efforts to reach representatives of V S Dempo and Viraj Profiles yielded no result. Melwani said many small and mid-size miners had approached the governments of Philippines, Thailand and Indonesia, to meet export commitments to their clients in China.