HZL plans to foray into potash mining, eyeing block in Rajasthan

New Delhi: Vedanta group firm Hindustan Zinc Ltd (HZL) plans to foray into potash mining and is eyeing a block in Rajasthan which has a fair chance of having lithium reserves also, a top official of the company said. India heavily relies on potash imports from countries like Russia, Canada, Belarus, and Israel.

The company is also planning to expand beyond base metals — zinc and lead — and precious metal silver as well as all critical minerals which are of strategic interest to the company.

Hindustan Zinc was declared as the preferred bidder for Dugocha gold block in Rajasthan, resulting into expansion of its portfolio of precious metals.

“So all the critical mineral blocks, as I said, we have got gold...block, we have got tungsten block. So Hindustan Zinc will expand beyond zinc, lead and silver. “We will expand into all critical minerals, whichever is of strategic interest to us, including not only minerals, including potash... Potash is there in Rajasthan... (There are) also chances of lithium association there (in the potash block). So we will look at that,” Hindustan Zinc CEO Arun Misra said.

HZL was awarded the Balepalyam Tungsten Block in Andhra Pradesh.

The company, he said, is eyeing to participate in the auction of all mineral blocks taking place in the country and added that its subsidiary Hindmetal Exploration Services Pvt Ltd — focused on strategic mineral exploration particularly in critical minerals — is fully on the job. “I am sure they (the company) will turn out to be the biggest private explorer as far as India is concerned,” he explained.