The government has annulled the auction of nine critical and strategic mineral blocks after poor investor response and a lack of technically qualified bidders in the seventh tranche. The cancellations represent a setback to efforts to ramp up domestic exploration and production of critical minerals that underpin energy security, clean-tech manufacturing and reduced import dependence. Officials said the outcome underlines persistent challenges in mobilising private capital for riskier mineral assets.

Two blocks received no bids and were annulled: Majhauli Titanium, Vanadium and Aluminous Laterite Block in Madhya Pradesh and RAMB Degana Tungsten, Lithium and Associated Mineral Block in Rajasthan. A further seven blocks were annulled because they attracted fewer than three technically qualified bidders. Those seven included Nawara-Nawadih Glauconite Block, Tipa Glauconite Block, Shahpur Glauconite Block, Sapneri Vanadium bearing Magnetite Ilmenite Block, Gurur Glauconite Block, Karahibhadar Glauconite Block and Naringpanga South Graphite Block, located in Bihar, Chhattisgarh and Odisha.

The seventh round was launched through a Notice Inviting Tender issued on 23 March and offered 19 mineral blocks comprising critical and strategic minerals. The auction proceeded under the Mines and Minerals (Development and Regulation) Act, 1957 and the Mineral (Auction) Rules, 2015, as amended. The tranche marked an expansion of the country’s critical mineral exploration footprint, with critical blocks auctioned for the first time in Gujarat, Uttarakhand and Telangana.

The tranche covered minerals including graphite, rare earth elements, vanadium, titanium, glauconite and rock phosphate, widening the geographical and mineral reach of the programme. The government has cancelled several blocks in earlier rounds as well, with annulments numbering 11 in the sixth round, five in the fifth, 11 in the fourth, three in the third, 14 in the second and 13 in the first tranche. The pattern highlights technical complexities, high capital requirements and regulatory uncertainty that tend to dampen bidding interest and points to the need for adjustments to auction design and qualification criteria.