All the news surrounding the mining ban in Karnataka has
increased fears of a similar ban in Goa as well, affecting companies like Sesa
Goa which operate in the area.
“Because of the ban in Karnataka, we are seeing FY12
production target fall short by almost 4-5 million tonne,” said PK Mukherjee,
managing director of Sesa Goa. The FY12 target now stands at 17-18 million
tonne.
Asked about the impact of the possibility rise in the export
duty of iron ore, Mr. Mukherjee said, “We have not factored in this
possibility, but we do not see any issue in iron ore pricing. Actually what is
left for duty increase now? Karnataka has gone, Orissa is struggling to put the
material in the port and now only Goa is left. I do not know who is ultimately
getting benefited with this export duty increase or export ban because even a
company like NMDC is losing thousands of crore per year”
In regards to the e-auction process for mines in Karnataka,
Mukherjee says that they are participating in the process, but they are getting
lower realizations from that. “Currently, we have less than one million tonne
as inventory in Karnataka”
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