Govt works on rules to avert monopolies in critical minerals

The Union mines ministry aims to prevent bidders cornering strategic mineral blocks and discourage non-serious players in the auctions beginning next month, a draft of the mining rules showed.

- Subhash Narayan

One applicant can submit only a single bid in an auction of a mineral block, and none of its affiliates will be allowed to enter the same auction, according to the mines ministry’s draft auction rules for strategic and critical minerals. Strategic and critical minerals include lithium, molybdenum, niobium, platinum group of minerals, potash and rare earth elements.

If a bidder submits more than one bid in an auction of a mineral block, or an affiliate submits bid in the same auction where such bidder has already submitted a bid, the government will reject both bids, the draft rules showed.

"The rules for auction are clearly to allow focused approach in exploration of critical and strategic minerals that hold importance for the country. The best and serious bids would be secured only if single option is provided to an entity for any mineral block," said an official aware of the development.