No decision on NMDC, KIOCL merger, says government

The Ministry of Steel had proposed merging NMDC with KIOCL, and the proposal was submitted to the Ministry of Finance around December 2024.

Meghna Mittal

March 11, 2025 / 16:11 IST

National Mineral Development Corporation (NMDC)

The government has not yet taken any decision regarding the proposed merger of National Mineral Development Corporation (NMDC) and Kudremukh Iron Ore Company Limited (KIOCL), the Union Minister of State for Heavy Industries and Steel Bhupathiraju Srinivasa Varma said in a written response in Parliament on Tuesday.

“The Department of Investment and Public Asset Management (DIPAM), the nodal department under the Ministry of Finance, Government of India, which deals with the subject matter of Central Public Sector Undertakings (CPSEs) for privatisation, merger, or subsidiarisation, has informed that, at present, there is no such decision regarding the merger of National Mineral Development Corporation (NMDC) and Kudremukh Iron Ore Company Limited (KIOCL),” Varma said.

The statement comes after Union Steel Minister HD Kumaraswamy, on January 25, disclosed that the Ministry of Steel was considering a merger of KIOCL with NMDC, describing KIOCL as being in a "critical condition" due to mounting financial difficulties. Kumaraswamy had stated that KIOCL had been reporting losses and that the situation was worsened by a lack of cooperation from the Karnataka state government.

KIOCL Ltd, which operates under the Ministry of Steel, runs a 3.5 million tonne per annum iron-oxide pellet plant and a blast furnace unit producing 2.16 lakh tonnes of pig iron annually at its facility in Mangaluru, Karnataka. KIOCL, formerly known as Kudremukh Iron Ore Company Limited, is a Mini-Ratna CPSE under the administrative control of the Ministry of Steel. Established in 1976, KIOCL has been a key player in iron ore mining and pellet production.

NMDC Limited, a Navratna CPSE under the Ministry of Steel, is India's largest iron ore producer, supplying around 20 percent of the country’s iron ore demand. In the financial year 2023-24, NMDC achieved a turnover of Rs 21,294 crore. The Ministry of Steel had proposed merging NMDC with KIOCL, and the proposal was submitted to the Ministry of Finance around December 2024.