Hindustan Copper Ltd is set to form a joint venture with a domestic player for entering into value-added products. KD Diwan, CMD of HCL said on Friday the commodity company planned to get into copper product market through a minority joint venture to manufacture downstream copper products such as rods, sheets, strips, foils and extrusions.

The joint venture initially aims at 10,000 tonnes of copper rods a year.

The partner has been identified. Both are now working on shaping the project detail. India has a market for value-added copper products worth ₹600 crore.

Exploration of mines

HCL got into another joint venture with Chhattisgarh Mineral Development Corporation for exploration of copper deposits in the mineral-rich State. CMDC has the exploration and prospecting licence for copper deposits in the State. HCL has planned exploration in Rajnandgaon, Sarguja and Bastar districts through this joint venture. In this venture, HCL, however, will have the majority stake. It has made 16 fresh applications for prospecting and mining in Rajasthan, Jharkhand and Madhya Pradesh. It has begun exploratory drilling at Chandmari in Rajasthan and Surda area in Jharkhand. However, its mining lease renewals are pending in Jharkhand. As a result, its Surda mine became non-operational this month.

Mining project delay

HCL’s biggest underground mining project at Malanjkhand in Madhya Pradesh also remained a non-starter in the absence of a clearance whether the project would affect wildlife of the nearby Kanha National Park. The ₹1,176-crore project is running late by about two years and faces cost escalation of 10-15 per cent.

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