13 blocks in the Arabian and Andaman Sea consisting of construction sand, lime mud, and polymetallic nodules.
India will launch its first-ever auction of offshore mineral deposits on Thursday. According to the Ministry of Mines, the auction comprises 13 blocks spread across the Arabian and Andaman Sea, consisting of construction sand, lime mud, and polymetallic nodules. These nodules mainly contain manganese and iron oxide but also economically attractive metals like nickel, cobalt, lithium, and rare earth elements.
In 2023, the Indian Parliament amended the Offshore Areas Mineral Act of 2002, introducing auctions as the main method to allocate mineral blocks. This enabled the government to let the private sector participate in bidding for offshore resources, paving the way for the first auction.
One of the First Nations to Issue Exploration Permits
With the auction, India is set to become one of the first nations to meddle with deep-sea mining, a highly controversial topic. While countries such as the UK and Germany have called for a moratorium on issuing deep-sea mining permits in the past, arguing that the environmental impact is yet to be fully determined, others are spearheading the topic, for example, Norway, which aims to award the first exploration permits for its continental shelf in 2025 (we reported).
India believes offshore mining is one solution to satisfy its growing need for raw materials and critical minerals. In its press statement, the Ministry of Mines highlighted the economic and strategic opportunities deep-sea mining holds for the country. Last year, the government published the “Critical Minerals for India” list, containing 30 elements considered crucial for economic development and national security. Currently, India imports most of the catalog’s contents from foreign nations. The new initiative seeks to change this; according to the Ministry, it will help India on its way to becoming a “global leader in critical minerals.”
Image: Rawmaterials.net via Canva