Steel Ministry Plans Mining Vertical at SAIL

22 May 2025 CW Team

The Ministry of Steel is considering the creation of a dedicated mining vertical within Steel Authority of India Ltd (SAIL) to enhance iron ore production, a senior government official has confirmed.

The proposal, currently under discussion at the ministerial level, aims to streamline and strengthen SAIL’s mining operations in support of its long-term expansion strategy. SAIL, one of India’s largest integrated steel producers, holds several captive iron ore blocks across the country.

“The Ministry is in talks with the company. The structure of the proposed vertical is being worked out and will be shared with SAIL for further action,” the official stated.

The planned mining unit would focus on increasing iron ore output to align with SAIL’s ambition to raise its installed steel-making capacity to 35 million tonnes per annum (MTPA) by 2030. Iron ore is a crucial raw material in the blast furnace-based steel manufacturing process.

SAIL, which operates under the administrative control of the Ministry of Steel, is the country’s third-largest iron ore producer. It manages a network of 15 iron ore mines in Jharkhand, Odisha, and Chhattisgarh, along with four coal mines and three flux mines.

In FY 2024–25, the company produced 33.78 million tonnes of iron ore, 0.59 million tonnes of coking coal, 0.84 million tonnes of thermal coal, 1.31 million tonnes of limestone, and 0.40 million tonnes of dolomite.

A query sent to SAIL regarding the development remained unanswered at the time of publication.

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