Bhubaneswar: Contrary to its earlier announcement that two iron ore blocks would be auctioned, a senior official of the Odisha government has indicated that only one iron ore block will be put for auction in the first phase. Mr R.K.Sharma, secretary of the Odisha steel & mines department has said that one among Ghoraburahani-Sagasahi East block and Jhunka-Patriposi blocks – with combined reserves of over 140 million tonnes will be auctioned in the first phase.
Of the two blocks one is of G2 category and the other is G3 category as per the UNFC norms. As per the law, the state government has asked for the Centre’s nod for auction of the G3 block. Since the state government is still waiting for the central government’s nod for the G3 block, only the block with G2 exploration status will be put on auction. As per source the iron ore block will be reserved for end user plants only.
Last week, the state government signed an MoU with SBI Caps and MSTC. While SBI Capital Markets Ltd. (SBI Caps) will be engaged as the transaction adviser for the auction, whereas the auction platform will be provided by MSTC Ltd. SBI Caps will assist the government in fixing the floor price for the auction.
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