Lithium reserves found in J-K to be auctioned by December: Mines secretary

The auction of lithium reserves discovered in Jammu and Kashmir’s Reasi will begin in December, according to Secretary Ministry of Mines Vivek Bharadwaj. The secretary stated at an industry event on Tuesday that the ministry has written to the J&K administration for the transaction advisor for the lithium auction.

“We have completed the consultation process with stakeholders on the amendment of the offshore Mining Act. Hopefully, we will soon bring it in the parliament for discussion,” Bharadwaj said.

“We have been lucky to discover 5.9 million tonnes of Lithium. We were actually looking for limestones that are available in Jammu Kashmir. We found limestone, bauxite, and lithium together. There has been renewed interest in exploration in these minerals,” he said.

In February of this year, the national government announced that 5.9 million tonnes of lithium deposits had been discovered for the first time in the country in Jammu and Kashmir. Lithium is a non-ferrous metal that is used in EV batteries as well as other sectors.

“Geological Survey of India (GSI), an attached office of the Ministry of Mines, carried out a G3 stage mineral exploration project during Field Season 2020-21 and 2021-22 in Salal-Haimna areas of Reasi district, Jammu & Kashmir and estimated an inferred resource (G3) of 5.9 million tonnes of lithium ore and the report has been handed over to the Government of Union Territory of J&K,” the Ministry of Mines earlier said.

More exploration activities in J&K are proposed by the Geological Survey of India in order to identify lithium resources.