INDIA Trends and Developments Contributed by: Anuja Tiwari, Mallika Anand, Aditya Pandey and Aman Raj, AZB & Partners
to international best practices in order to mini - mise ecological disruption. Once these rules are notified, they should result in pivotal changes in the offshore mining industry and assist in achiev - ing sustainability goals. Reforms and the way forward In the current era, sustainability and mining are juxtaposed, as industries strive to balance resource extraction with ecological preservation. There is also a greater emphasis on sustainabil - ity, as tailor-made policies for strategic minerals have been introduced, to align with India’s ener - gy security and EV targets. Special incentives for the exploration and mining of critical minerals (eg, lithium and rare earths) are vital for energy transition and EV industries. The amendments require stronger environmental compliance and revenue-sharing mechanisms to ensure bal - anced growth with minimal ecological impact. In January 2024, India signed an agreement with Argentina’s state-owned enterprise, Catamarca Minera y Energética Sociedad del Estado, to explore and develop five lithium blocks in Argen - tina. This marks India’s first overseas lithium mining project. In October 2024, India and the United States of America signed a memorandum of understanding to strengthen co-operation on critical mineral supply chains, including lithium and cobalt. These strategic partnerships aim to enhance international collaboration in securing the minerals that are essential for India’s clean energy initiatives. In addition to reforms supporting new tech - nology, the Indian government has also made reforms to improve the framework of minerals associated with conventional energy. A star rat - ing policy has been issued for rating each coal mine based on socio-economic factors. The government has developed a portal where the
star rating of each coal mine is published. More than 90% of mines were rated by the Ministry of Mines in 2024. The government has also devel - oped the PARIVESH portal as a single window online portal for obtaining environmental clear - ances, which will reduce the bureaucratic inef - fectiveness associated with the mining sector. The central government recently issued an order directing state governments to: • expedite mineral block auctions with trans - parency; • adopt sustainable practices; and • implement technologies like artificial intelli - gence for exploration and monitoring. The order also requires the optimisation of low- grade mineral use, value addition within India and real-time monitoring to curb illegal mining. State governments are required to submit quar - terly progress reports on auctions, sustainabil - ity practices and regulatory compliances. This directive aligns India’s mining sector with global environmental standards while enhancing effi - ciency and competitiveness in critical mineral production. Private initiatives towards sustainability Mining companies are also taking voluntary measures towards sustainability. In the past, Tata Steel’s iron ore mine at Noamundi installed a 3 MW solar power plant to meet its energy needs. Hindustan Zinc, the largest zinc producer in the country, launched EcoZen, Asia’s first green zinc brand to meet the growing demand for sustaina - ble and eco-friendly materials, particularly in the automotive sector. Zinc is manufactured using renewable energy, which has 75% lower carbon footprint than the global average. Vedanta Alu - minium, India’s largest producer of aluminium,
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