Nalco awaits nod for Potangi Mines

The National Aluminium Company (Nalco), which plans to add fifth stream to its alumina refinery at Damanjodi in Koraput district, is awaiting Government approval for Potangi bauxite mines.

“If we get Potangi deposits, we will be able to expand our refinery capacity by one million tonne at Damanjodi that will cost `6,000 crore,” said Nalco CMD Ansuman Das after a meeting with Union secretaries of Mines and Steel here. Potangi bauxite mine has a reserve of about 76 million tonnes.

The company has plans to go for the fifth stream refinery based on medium pressure digestion technology. The capacity of the stream will be approximately one million tonne per annum (mtpa) and investment will be around `6,000 crore, he said.

The capacity of the refinery at Damanjodi is set to reach 3.3 mtpa with the addition of one mtpa plant.

Meanwhile, the company has obtained approval of the High Level Clearance Authority (HLCA) of the State Government to set up a new 0.5 mtpa aluminium smelter and 1,260 mw captive power plant (CPP) at `16,450 crore at Kepse in Sundargarh district.

Expressing confidence over renewal of Panchpatmali bauxite mines, Das said the State Government is expected to recommend to the Centre for the mining lease within a month or two.

“The mining lease for Panchpatmali will expire in November but we hope to obtain the renewal before that,” Das said.The Union Ministry of Environment and Forests (MoEF) has extended the one-year temporary working permit (TWP) of Nalco by three months for operation at the central and north block of Panchpatmali mines.

Bauxite from Panchpatmali mines feeds its alumina refinery at Damanjodi in Koraput district.

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