KOLKATA (miningweekly.com) – Indian iron-ore miner NMDC has stated that ultra-leftwing extremism and violence pose the greatest risk to its assets in central Indian province of Chhattisgarh.
In a company statement, NMDC points to disturbances created by extremists in the Bailadila region, where it operates iron-ore mines.
The miner said it had sought additional government security forces for protection of its assets and employees from violence and abductions.
NMDC said that there was a need for immediate protection, as the risk from extremist violence would severely impact on its ongoing projects and on its rail infrastructure, which could lead to an inventory build-up at pitheads and disruptions to customers.
Although not explicitly stated, sources in the company said that ongoing projects at risk included the greenfield development of Deposit 13 at Bailadila iron-ore mines in joint venture with Chhattisgarh Mining Development Corporation, the ramping up of production at Deposit 10 to six-million tons a year from 1.2-million tons a year and the nearly completed two-million ton a year iron-ore pellet plant.
NMDC, as part of its upstream expansion, is also constructing a three-million ton greenfield steel plant in Chhattisgarh that is scheduled to go into a trial run in December.
It has also firmed up plans to construct a 400 km slurry pipeline connecting its Bailadila mines to the southern Indian port town of Vishakhapatnam, scheduled for completion in late 2018.
In 2009, ultra-leftwing extremist had blown up NMDC older 240 km slurry pipeline originating from its Bailadila mines. Last year, the extremists raided NMDC’s Bachli mines and set on fire the conveyor belt severely impacting transportation and evacuation of ore from the mines.