PANAJI: Ever since the news of the ban of imports of iron ore below 60 per cent Fe content, high grade iron ore spot prices from India have risen to $190 and $195 per tonne, as a result Goa’s traditional miners,

especially Sesa Goa not effected, is going ahead with its expansion plans of exploration, building 20 barges and three bypass roads, among others, said Sesa Goa officials.
As of date Sesa Goa iron ore reserves stands at 535 million tonnes, which includes 70 million tonnes of Dempo mines post acquisition, Sesa Goa’s managing director, Mr P K Mukherjee informed media-persons. For the year ended March 31, 2010, iron ore sales record 20.5 million tonnes out of which 3.6 million tonnes is from Dempo post acquisition of June 12, 2009. He said that exploration on some pocket mines will be conducted in a scientific and holistic method.
Sesa Goa exports above 68 Fe-grade iron ore and the news of China banning low grade iron ore has no impact. Exports through traders are less than 25 per cent and the rest is exported directly to Chinese mills on a long-term contract basis, said Mr Sushil Gupta, director of finance, on the sidelines of the press conference. To a question, he said that Sesa Goa will go ahead and build 20 barges, and is looking at building three to four bypasses.
Sesa Goa has its own approved environment laboratory, a butterfly park, a bamboo pavilion and 146 hectares of land has been converted for cultivation in Vagna, Codli and in other mining areas.
He said the general feeling some 23 years ago was not as much as it is now. Iron ore was selling at $11 a tonne then. The China boom started in 2003 and a lot of new entries, termed short-term entrants, have rushed in who were not there in the 60s. These players, who don’t have a long-term view, will obviously have fallout. The fallout will spill-over to the actual stakeholders and peers. He said a lot needs to be done about illegal mining. He feels the Goa government should go down heavily against the ‘’upstarts’’ in the mining industry responsible for illegal mining. He said that the Ore Exporters Association of Goa could not assume the role of investigator but expressed serious concerns that many a times before, the state government authorities as the illegal mining was marring the image of the real miners.
He justified miners avoiding payment of ‘’green cess’’ to the state government now that there was a changeover from duty payment structure to 10 per cent payment of ad valorem on ore exported entailing no further levies on exporters, as per the central order.