Shared Insights | India: A Potential New Force in the Global Mining Industry

Amid the intertwining of the global clean energy revolution and geopolitical resource competition, India is reshaping its mining landscape with unprecedented intensity. As the world's fifth-largest economy, India is well aware of the pivotal role critical minerals play in achieving carbon neutrality, ensuring national defense security, and advancing the "Make in India" strategy. Since 2023, from domestic policy deregulation to overseas resource acquisitions, from deep-sea mining initiatives to circular economy innovations, India has been accelerating the construction of its critical mineral supply chain through a stimulus policy package. However, the constraints of resource endowments, technological barriers, and the complexity of international competition have intensified the clash between its ambitions and reality.

Domestic Policy: Dual-Track Reform Driven by Capital and Technological Breakthroughs

——Injection of 100 Billion-Level Funds and Accelerated Exploration

In January 2025, the Indian Federal Ministry of Mines approved a special fund of 163 billion rupees (approximately $1.87 billion) to support the exploration and development of 30 strategic minerals, including lithium, cobalt, and nickel. The plan covers three core areas:

Upgrading Geological Exploration. Deploying AI geological modeling and satellite remote sensing technologies to conduct three-dimensional mineralization predictions for the Jammu and Kashmir lithium mining area, aiming to identify reserves exceeding 8 million mt by 2027.

Offshore Resource Development. Launching the Indian Ocean polymetallic nodule exploration project, utilizing the autonomous deep-sea submersible "Samudrayaan" to assess resources at depths of 5,000 meters.

Public-Private Collaboration Mechanism. Introducing a "50% exploration cost subsidy" policy to attract private capital from entities like Tata Group and Vedanta Resources to participate in rare earth exploration in Odisha.

Additionally, the public sector has simultaneously added an investment of 180 billion rupees, focusing on the construction of a graphite purification plant in Madhya Pradesh and a lithium electrolysis base in Karnataka, aiming to increase domestic lithium processing capacity to 150,000 mt/year by 2030.

——Technological Self-Reliance and Circular Economy Breakthroughs

To overcome the bottleneck in mineral refining technology, the Indian Ministry of Mines announced the establishment of the "Center of Excellence for Critical Minerals" in June 2023, as the core technological support platform for its national critical minerals strategy. The center aims to integrate mineral resource data, establish dynamic monitoring mechanisms, and update the critical minerals list every three years to address supply chain risks.

Technology R&D Clusters. Setting up three major R&D hubs in Bangalore, Hyderabad, and Bhopal, focusing on lithium-ion direct extraction (DLE) and rare earth bio-hydrometallurgy technologies.

Digital Mine Pilot. Deploying a 5G intelligent mining system in the Chhattisgarh copper mining area to achieve real-time monitoring of ore grade and remote control of mining robots.

Recycling Industry Chain Layout.The import tariffs on scrap from 12 types of critical minerals have been eliminated, with the aim of increasing the recovery rate of rare earth elements from electronic waste from 12% to 35%.

——Market-Oriented Reforms and Resource Positioning in Disputed Areas

In March 2025, the Indian Ministry of Mines initiated the auction of 13 critical mineral blocks, setting three precedents:

Revolution in Exploration Rights. For the first time, private enterprises were allowed to acquire 50-year exploration revenue rights through bidding, breaking the monopoly of state-owned enterprises.

Focus on Strategic Resources. Controversial resources such as zinc mines in border areas and ilmenite in Kerala were included, strengthening geopolitical and economic presence.

Design of Foreign Investment Restrictions. Foreign ownership was required to be no more than 49%, and the localisation rate of exploration equipment was required to reach 60%, creating a barrier of "trading market access for technology."

This round of auctions attracted 23 companies from around the world to bid. Ultimately, the consortium led by the Steel Authority of India Limited (SAIL) won the manganese ore block in Odisha for $2.2 billion, marking the dominance of local capital in the strategic resources sector.

International Expansion: Three-Dimensional Development of Deep-Sea Mining and Resource Alliances

——Deep-Sea Mining: Seizing the Opportunity for Global High-Seas Resources

In July 2024, India submitted an exploration application to the International Seabed Authority (ISA) for the Clarion-Clipperton Zone (in the Pacific Ocean), with the goal of completing a feasibility study on the commercial exploitation of polymetallic nodules by 2026. The zone is estimated to contain 2.8 million mt of cobalt and 160 million mt of nickel, which could meet India's EV industry demand for 20 years. Technical verification will be undertaken by the research vessel "Sagar Nidhi."

——Resource Diplomacy: Building a Tripartite Alliance of "Africa-Indo-Pacific-Lithium Triangle"

Rare Earth Layout in Africa. Joint exploration with Malawi was initiated in September 2024, led by the state-owned IREL company, with the goal of achieving a production capacity of 5,000 mt per year of rare earth oxides by 2028.

Technological Synergy in the Indo-Pacific. In November 2024, through the "Quad" mechanism, US robotic mining patents were introduced, and ecological assessments of seabed rare earth enrichment zones were jointly conducted with Japan.

Lithium Triangle in South America. In January 2025, a Memorandum of Understanding on Joint Lithium Resource Development was signed with Chile, granting exploration rights in the Atacama Salt Lake, with supporting construction of an exclusive logistics corridor at the Port of Antofagasta.

——Supply Chain Risk Hedging Mechanisms and Strategic Reserves

In July 2024, a "Dynamic Risk Monitoring System for Critical Minerals" was established, setting a five-level early warning system based on indicators such as the political stability of source countries and the security of transportation corridors. In March 2025, a national strategic reserve plan was launched, with the first batch including six types of minerals such as lithium, cobalt, and rare earth elements. The target reserve volume is to meet 90 days of industrial demand, with storage bases located in underground salt caverns in Rajasthan.

Systemic Challenges: The Triple Paradox of Resource Ambitions

—The Dilemma of Technological Autonomy and Global Dependence

Although India invested $3 billion in May 2023 to introduce Australian spodumene purification technology, the energy consumption of its domestic Direct Lithium Extraction (DLE) process remains 40% higher than the international leading level, resulting in a development cost of $9,500/mt for the Reasi lithium mine, far exceeding the global average price. In the field of deep-sea mining, India only possesses operational capabilities at the 3,000-meter level, still a generation away from the 5,000-meter technical threshold required for commercial exploitation.

—Structural Imbalance Between Market-Oriented Reforms and State-Owned Enterprise Dominance

Among the 13 blocks auctioned as mentioned above, 70% were won by state-owned enterprise consortia, with private capital largely confined to auxiliary sectors. This "state capitalism" model, while enabling rapid resource concentration, has led private firms like Vedanta Resources to shift their investments towards cobalt mines in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), resulting in insufficient innovation vitality in the domestic industry chain.

—Conflict Between Resource Development and Sustainable Governance

Continuous protests have erupted in Odisha's Sukinda chromite mine due to tailings pollution, with hexavalent chromium concentrations in rivers exceeding standards by 200 times, forcing the government to suspend mining licenses for three blocks. In some border regions, the deep integration of resource development and military deployments may trigger disputes with neighboring countries.

Strategic Insight: A Stress Test for National Capacity Building

India's critical minerals strategy is essentially an extreme experiment in national capabilities:

Institutional Innovation Dimension. The National Critical Minerals Mission (NCMM), a national strategic plan approved by the Indian government in January 2025, aims to enhance India's autonomy in critical minerals and reduce external dependence through systematic policy tools and international cooperation. NCMM marks the first cross-departmental collaboration, with the "Critical Minerals Empowerment Committee" directly led by the Cabinet Secretary, integrating resources from 12 departments including foreign affairs, defense, and environment.

Global Governance Game. India is constructing a "decentralized" supply chain through the "Minerals Security Partnership" (MSP), but U.S. and European demands to exclude specific countries' technical standards force India to balance strategic autonomy with alliance interests.

Conclusion: India's Formula for Resource Sovereignty

From the foothills of the Himalayas to the Pacific Ocean basin, India is leveraging its nationwide system to address resource dilemmas. The underlying logic of this mining transformation lies not only in ensuring an adequate supply of critical minerals but also in reshaping global industrial value chains through resource sovereignty. However, as technological shortcomings confront geopolitical games and state capital stifles market vitality, India's ambitions may face the risk of strategic overextension characterized by "high investment but low output."In the next decade, the success or failure of this resource competition will determine whether India can transform from a resource-dependent country into a rule-maker, or whether it will fall into a new round of development traps. The answer may lie hidden within the polymetallic nodules of the Clarion-Clipperton Zone, awaiting the test and verification of time.