India: SC seeks Ministry of Steel's view on Karnataka iron ore exports

By SteelMint Bureau/Meera Mohanty

The Supreme Court has sought the Steel Ministry's stand on allowing iron ore exports from Karnataka.

A bench led by Chief Justice NV Ramana has been hearing the Karnataka miners' pleas that they too, like the rest of the country, be allowed to export iron ore.

Exports from Karnataka's three iron ore districts of Bellary, Chitradurga and Tumkur have been banned since almost a decade after the SC stepped in to clean-up rampant illegal mining in the state. Iron ore is currently sold through e-auction that only registered beneficiation, pellet, sponge and steel players are allowed to participate in. With most of it bought by JSW Steel.

Both the Mines Ministry and the SC's advisory panel, the Central Empowered Committee, recommends allowing exports. The state's miners pointed out that only they in Karnataka, and not Odisha or Goa's miners, suffered such a ban. That while the restrictions denied them fairer prices, the steelmaker was making "windfall profits".

The Ministry of Mines, comparing similar grade ore in Odisha, pointed out that restrictions imposed on Karnataka resulted in far lower prices. This affected royalty collections negatively, and now that the state had auctioned mines, would also suppress its revenues from premiums. Its written affidavit pointed out that the country hadn't banned exports of iron ore, conditions imposed on Karnataka, including capping combined production at 35mt a year, was done "under extraordinary situation prevailing then because of unprecedented illegal mining. However, the situation has changed now and the Hon'ble Court may allow export of iron ore to bring these mines on par with the other states." It is also asking for mines to be allowed to operate optimally under their respective environment clearances and IBM approved mining plans whose combined capacity stands at 38 mt a year.

The court on Monday, objecting to the Ministry of Mines affidavit being available to the media before it reached the court, wants the Centre to ensure this does not happen this time. The matter is to be heard again on April 18.