Sesa Goa Expects Jump in Output from Goa Mines By PRASENJIT BHATTACHARYA
NEW DELHI -- Sesa Goa Ltd. expects to increase its iron-ore production from Goa, the western Indian state where its biggest mines are located, by 18% in the financial year that began April 1, but is uncertain about the resumption of mining in the southern state of Karnataka. P.K. Mukherjee, managing director of India's largest iron-ore exporter by volume, told analysts Wednesday that Sesa's production in Goa had been hit by road congestion in the state's mining areas and an ongoing transporters' strike. But, he said road congestion has eased after several mines extracting iron ore without legal approval have been asked to shut. He also expects the strike to end soon. Mr. Mukherjee expects the Vedanta Group company's output from its mines in Goa to be around 15.0 million metric tons this financial year, compared with 12.7 million tons in 2011-12. Its total output in 2011-12 was 13.8 million tons, with the rest coming from Karnataka. Iron-ore mining in Karnataka is facing uncertainty. The Supreme Court in last July and August banned mining in three major ore-producing districts, citing damage to the environment. Mr. Mukherjee said a panel appointed by the court has directed miners to pay a penalty and carry out rehabilitation activities in the areas, such as by planting saplings, before they can be allowed to resume operations. The rehabilitation plan will require the approval of the federal environment ministry. "Your guess is as good as mine," Mr. Mukherjee said when asked about a possible date for the resumption of mining in Karnataka. He said the company may have to pay a penalty of around 100 million rupees ($1.9 million) and spend a similar amount on rehabilitation. "We can meet the conditions in a month." Mr. Mukherjee said Sesa plans to spend 6 billion rupees on capital expenditure this fiscal year, mostly for expanding its mines in India. The plan doesn't include what it could spend on developing iron-ore mines in Liberia, where it has acquired a majority stake in a mining company. According to aero-magnetic surveys, the area that the Liberian company holds has 1.0 billion tons of reserves, Sesa said. "We are undertaking a study of the region at the moment. The broad contours of the [Liberian] project will emerge in the next few months," Mr. Mukherjee said. On Tuesday, Sesa reported a 21% fall in net profit to 11.62 billion rupees for the quarter ended March 31. Its sales for the period fell 23% to 27.94 billion rupees, due to lower production. Write to Prasenjit Bhattacharya at [email protected] http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052702304811304577365201893522614.html?mod=googlenews_wsj * * * Stop-mining order adds to Sesa Goa's troubles BS Reporter / New Delhi Apr 26, 2012, 01:00 IST Sesa Goa, a Vedanta Group company, already seeing erosion in profits due to a mining ban in Karnataka, is facing fresh trouble in Goa, with a stop-mining order on a petition from locals. A sub-divisional magistrate (Bicholim) has directed immediate stopping of work at its Phase-III mines in Advalpal village (north Goa). Phase-I and -II mining operations in the area were stopped earlier. Sesa Goa sources 15 mt of ore from Goa annually. From Phase-III, it gets 200,000 tonnes of ore. - Goa boosts Sesa's performance - Sesa Goa submits R&R plan for K'tka mine, expects ops to resume - Shareholders meet on merger after court directive: Sesa Goa - Sesa Goa Q4 net dips 20% to Rs 1,162 cr - CCI approves merger of Sterlite, Sesa Goa - Primex Group to raise $5 mn to expand biz A Sesa Goa spokesperson declined to comment, saying the matter was in court. Goa Foundation, a non-government organisation, and the villagers had filed a complaint before the district administration at overflow of mining dumps into the drain passing through Advalpal village. The complaint was at Sesa Goa and another company, Lithoferro. The SDM has asked both companies to stop operations. Lithoferro has been told to pay the cost of rehabilitating the drain. The case had gone to court in 2006 and the first notice to the companies was issued the same year. Subsequent notices asked for detailed technical reports. For the past three years, only Phase-III of the Sesa Goa project was allowed to operate. While announcing its quarterly numbers, Sesa Goa said closure of operations in Karnataka due to the mining ban imposed by the Supreme Court last year had led to a decline of 27 per cent in iron ore production in 2011-12. It reported a decline of 36 per cent in consolidated net profit to Rs 2,695 crore for the year. It said it had submitted rehabilitation & resettlement plan for its mine in Karnataka’s Chitradurga district and expected mining operations in the state to begin soon. http://business-standard.com/india/news/stop-mining-order-adds-to-sesa-goas-troubles/472672/
