Anil Agarwal-led Vedanta Ltd on Sunday said it is actively exploring critical mineral resources across six Indian states — Maharashtra, Rajasthan, Bihar, Arunachal Pradesh, Karnataka, and Chhattisgarh — as it looks to strengthen its position in the fast-growing clean energy value chain.Critical minerals are vital for a wide range of energy-efficient technologies, including electric vehicles, wind turbines, and modern electricity grids. With the global energy transition accelerating, demand for these materials is rising rapidly, as reported news agency PTI. In a statement, Vedanta said, “The company is building its critical minerals footprint, exploring copper, nickel, cobalt, chromium, vanadium, tungsten and Platinum Grade Elements (PGEs) across states like Maharashtra, Rajasthan, Bihar, Arunachal Pradesh, Karnataka, and Chhattisgarh, supported by India’s policy push for mineral security.”As part of its efforts, Vedanta Group secured four mineral blocks in the fourth round of critical mineral auctions. The company bagged a vanadium and graphite block in Arunachal Pradesh and a cobalt, manganese, and iron (poly-metallic) block in Karnataka. Its subsidiary, Hindustan Zinc Ltd (HZL), won a tungsten block in Andhra Pradesh and another in Tamil Nadu.Vedanta is also expanding its value-added product portfolio in zinc and aluminium. The company has recently forayed into zinc alloys with a new plant having a capacity of 30,000 tonnes per annum.For aluminium, the board has approved an investment of around USD 1.5 billion. The funds will go toward smelter expansion and enhancing capacity for value-added products at its flagship aluminium facilities.Vedanta is one of the few global players that produce four of the world’s most widely used metals — iron (for steel), aluminium, copper, and zinc.
