South Korean steel giant Posco will have
to wait again for permission to start mining iron ore in Odisha as the Indian government
said it needs further clarifications from the state government where the company
has waited nine years to set up a $12 billion steel plant.
Earlier this year, the then government
said Posco’s request for a mining licence was at an advanced stage of
processing. But nine months on, little progress has been made on the ground.
The company has yet to start work on the planned 12-million-tonnes-a-year plant
due to stiff opposition to land acquisition and delays in securing permission
to mine iron ore, a raw material for steel.
The federal Mines Ministry last week
wrote to Odisha seeking clarity on how much of the mining land sought by POSCO
was notified as an iron ore bearing area where commercial mining was allowed.
Mining in non-notified areas needs more approvals than in notified areas.
POSCO officials have said it was
unlikely to build the plant without assured supply of iron ore.
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