Coal India Limited (CIL) and Indian Rare Earths Limited (IREL) Join Forces for Critical Minerals Development.
Economy Business
On January 7, 2025, Coal India Limited (CIL), based in Kolkata (West Bengal) and operating under the Ministry of Coal, signed a non-binding Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Indian Rare Earths Limited (IREL), a Mumbai (Maharashtra)-based Public Sector Undertaking (PSU) under the Department of Atomic Energy (DAE), to collaborate on the development of critical minerals.
- The partnership aims to enhance India's capacity to mine, extract, refine, and source critical minerals such as mineral sands and Rare Earth Elements (REE), which are crucial for the electronics, renewable energy, and defense sectors.
- This collaboration is a crucial part of CIL's efforts to reduce India's dependence on imports of essential minerals like lithium and cobalt.
Main Point :- (i) As part of this partnership, the two companies will collaborate to acquire assets, source raw materials both domestically and internationally, and enhance mining, extraction, and refining capabilities.
(ii) In the Union Budget 2024-25, the Government of India (GoI) introduced the Critical Mineral Mission to strengthen domestic production, promote recycling, and facilitate asset acquisition.
(iii) India, among the few countries producing rare earth elements, depends on IREL for self-sufficiency in mining, processing, and refining, as China continues to be the leading player in the critical minerals sector.
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