Number of copper mines to come up for auction in 3 years: Secretary

A large number of copper blocks will come up for auctions in next three years, Mines Secretary Arun Kumar said.

Speaking at the India Copper Forum here, Kumar said, "... we have good indications in the K3 (Khetri) belt (that) we have large resources as and when those blocks come up for auction..."

"So two-three years down the line, there would be a large number of blocks coming up for auctions. So that is the opportunity people should look at...," he added.

He further said the Ministry of Mines has also launched aeromagnetic surveys on a large basis. It is going to cover 8.2 lakh square kilometres in a period of 3 years.

During aeromagnetic surveys, magnetic measurements are made from low-flying airplanes flying along closely-spaced parallel flight lines. This is a common type of geophysical survey carried out using a magnetometer aboard or towed behind the aircraft.

"We are already in the first year of it," he said. The first phase was launched on April 7, 2017 following which the second and third phased will be carried.

After this, he said, there will be another survey and once the data is collected it would become very easy to go for making blocks ready for auction.

The secretary also said that K3 or Khetri belt is in Rajasthan and bears a total reserve of up to 3 lakh tonnes.