𝗜𝗻𝗱𝗶𝗮 𝗘𝘅𝗽𝗹𝗼𝗿𝗲𝘀 𝗥𝘂𝘀𝘀𝗶𝗮𝗻 𝗥𝗮𝗿𝗲 𝗘𝗮𝗿𝘁𝗵 𝗦𝗮𝗺𝗽𝗹𝗲𝘀
India seeks to diversify its mineral supply chains away from China. State miner IREL is in talks with Rosneft to source samples from the Tomtor deposit in Siberia.
Key details of the discussions:
- IREL works under the Department of Atomic Energy.
- Russia will process samples before shipping them to India.
- India will study the mineral composition of the Tomtor deposit first.
- Tomtor in Yakutia is one of the largest undeveloped rare earth deposits in the world.
Rare earth minerals serve several industries:
- Electric vehicle motors.
- Defence systems.
- Clean energy technologies.
India's current mineral status:
- India holds the third-largest rare earth reserves at 7.23 million metric tons.
- The country lacks large-scale refining capacity for high-purity separation.
- The government approved a 73 billion rupee programme for domestic magnet production.
- Domestic magnet production targets a 2029–2030 timeline.
IREL is conducting other international evaluations:
- Discussions are ongoing with firms in Japan and South Korea.
- Mining prospects are under review in Argentina, Australia, and Malawi.
- Previous efforts included exploring samples from Myanmar.
Source: The Times of India