Odisha to supply bauxite to Vedanta’s Lanjigarh refinery

Bhubaneswar, Aug 17 (PTI) Odisha government today said ithas decided to provide raw material linkage to Vedanta’salumina refinery project at Lanjigarh from the Kodingamalibauxite mines in Koraput district. State-run Odisha Mining Corporation (OMC) owns the mininglease of Kodingamali bauxite mines, and production is expectedto start soon. "We will make arrangements for bauxite supplies to Vedantaplant from OMC’s Kodingamali mines. Bauxite supplies can takeoff once production starts from the mines," Odisha’s Steel andMines Minister Prafulla Mallick said. Mallick said OMC has got the mining lease of Kodingamalimines. The bauxite mines of OMC are spread over an area of428.31 hectares in tribal dominated Koraput and Rayagadadistricts. Vedanta has been running its refinery at Lanjigarh byimporting bauxite from states like Chhattisgarh, AndhraPradesh, Gujarat and Maharashtra since its inception. Odishagovernment has not been able to meet the refinery’s rawmaterial requirement, due to which it has not operated at itsfull capacity. The company has occasionally imported bauxite fromcountries like New Guinea, even as Lanjigarh refinery plant issurrounded by bauxite deposits. Vedanta has been pleading for alternative bauxite minesafter the Centre’s Environment Ministry rejected miningactivities at Niyamgiri hills. Meanwhile, Mallick said the state has been preparing forauction of five new mines, which included four limestonemines and one manganese mine located in Malkangiri, Nuapadaand Bargargh. "We will be able to go for public auction by first week ofSeptember," Mallick said. PTI AAM NNABM