RAIPUR: The operational activity of the country's first lithium mines and Rare Earth Elements (REE) will commence at Katghora area in Korba district, about 180 km from Raipur.
A composite license has been handed over to a Kolkata-based company for survey, testing and mining of India’s first lithium and rare earth elements block in Katghora, auctioned by the Centre in June last year.
The license contract document was jointly given by union coal & mines minister G Kishan Reddy and Chhattisgarh CM Vishnu Deo Sai in Raipur.
Country’s first lithium auction of Katghora lithium and REE block that was put up for sale, was bagged by Kolkata-based Maiki South Mining Pvt Ltd through e-auction with the highest bid premium of 76.05 percent.
Significant lithium reserves were earlier confirmed in the sampling study and exploration by the Geological Survey of India (GSI).
The GSI had substantiated the presence of large reserves of lithium in about 250 hectares of Katghora. In the initial survey by GSI, in about 250 hectares area, the lithium content of about 10 ppm to 2 thousand ppm (parts per million) has been found.
Presence of Rare Earth Elements (REE) has also been discovered in the block. The initial auction for a lithium block in Reasi, Kashmir, did not evoke expected interest last year leading Katghora to emerge as India’s first lithium mining venture with a composite license for testing and mining.
It will be the first lithium mine now to be operational soon in the country and will help both the state and the country to surge ahead towards new growth.
“Chhattisgarh as a leading state in the mining sector will contribute significantly to the contribution of developed India 2047,” said the chief minister.
"Korba, enriched with essential raw materials like coal and water for power generation, will soon witness mining of lithium in its Katghora block," he added.