After reaching record production levels in the last financial year (FY 2023-24), the production of several key minerals has continued to grow strongly in the current fiscal (FY 2024-25) till February.
Among key minerals, iron ore production, which accounts for 70% of the total Mineral Conservation and Development Rules (MCDR) mineral production by value, stood at 263 million tonne (MT) during April–February of FY25, marking a 4.4% increase from 252 MT in the same period last fiscal, according to provisional government data.
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In FY24, total iron ore production stood at 274 MT. Manganese ore production also rose by 12.8% to 3.4 MT in April–February of FY25, up from 3 MT in the corresponding period of the previous year.Bauxite production, too, registered a 3.6% growth, reaching 22.7 MT, compared to 21.9 MT during April–February of FY24.
According to official data, lead concentrate production increased by 3.5% to 352 thousand tonne (THT) in the first eleven months of FY25.In the non-ferrous metal sector, primary aluminium production in FY25 (April–February) grew by 0.9% year-on-year, rising to 38.36 lakh tonne (LT) from 38.00 LT in FY24. During the same period, refined copper production surged by 7.1%, increasing from 4.64 LT to 4.97 LT.India remains a major global producer, ranking as the second-largest aluminium producer, one of the top ten producers of refined copper, and the fourth-largest iron ore producer in the world.
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The continued growth in iron ore production reflects strong demand from its primary user, the steel industry, the government stated. “Coupled with growth in aluminium and copper, these trends point towards sustained economic activity in key user sectors such as energy, infrastructure, construction, automotive, and machinery.
”To reduce import dependency, the government has been actively promoting domestic production of critical minerals. As part of this effort, it has been auctioning critical mineral blocks to both private and public sector companies to boost exploration and production activities.
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