KABIL: To Ensure Supply of Critical Minerals

The Ministry of Mines has approved the setting up of a joint venture Khanij Bidesh India Ltd. (KABIL) to ensure a consistent supply of critical and strategic minerals to the Indian domestic market.

KABIL

• It will be a joint venture of three central Public Sector Enterprises namely, National Aluminium Company Ltd.(NALCO), Hindustan Copper Ltd.(HCL) and Mineral Exploration Company Ltd. (MECL) in the ratio of 40:30:30.
• The KABIL will strive to attain twin objectives of ensuring mineral security of the Nation and realizing the overall objective of import substitution.
• The KABIL would carry out identification, acquisition, exploration, development, mining and processing of strategic minerals overseas for commercial use and meeting country’s requirement of these minerals.
• The KABIL will help in building partnerships with other mineral-rich countries like Australia and those in Africa and South America, where Indian expertise in exploration and mineral processing will be mutually beneficial bringing about new economic opportunities.
• The sourcing of these critical minerals would be done through trading opportunities, G2G collaborations with the producing countries or strategic acquisitions or investments in the exploration and mining assets of these minerals in the source countries.

As part of India’s pledge to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and opting a greener mode of transportation, there has been a renewed focus on Electric vehicles. Therefore it is important to ensure energy storage through batteries. Also, sectors like Aviation, Defence and Space Research also require minerals with lower weight and high mechanical strength. The government has set up KABIL to ensure a sustained source of mineral and metal commodities.