Vedanta ltd has won India’s first-ever auction of a gold mine in Chhattisgarh as the nation opens up the sector to private companies to curb overseas purchases of the metal.
Vedanta, a unit of london-listed Vedanta Resources Plc, beat three other bidders in the auction for Baghmara mine, Reena Kangale who is head of Chhattisgarh’s Directorate of Geology and Mining, told The Pioneer on Saturday.
She stated that the company has quoted the highest bid of 12.55 per cent of the Indian Bureau of Mines price of Rs74,712 a troy ounce (1 troy ounce = 31.10 gram) to win the gold mine.
She added that the Chhattisgarh Government expected earn more than Rs 81.40 crore in addition to existing royalty of Rs 24.70 crore from the mine with a reserve of about 2,700-kg gold. The mining will begin in two years, she added.
Chhattisgarh’s Directorate of Geology and Mining officials claim that gold price in India will crash once the mining operation begins at Baghmara which spread in 608 hectares area in Balodabazar-Bhatapara district. Baghmara goldmine is located nearly 130 km away from State capital Raipur.