India's Federal Ministry of Mines has announced that the expansion of Gautam Adani's copper smelter is set to increase capacity, potentially eliminating the country's dependence on refined copper imports, Reuters reported.
Copper, identified as a critical mineral by India last year, is in high demand as the nation experiences rapid economic growth, according to the news agency.
Kutch Copper, part of Adani Enterprises, has commenced operations and is expected to reach its full capacity by February/March of the following year.
The $1.2bn (Rs101.64bn) plant in Mundra, Gujarat, will have an initial capacity of 500,000 tonnes (t), with plans to double this to one million by 2028–29, according to a Kutch Copper executive.
India's refined copper production currently stands at approximately 555,000tpa, which falls short of domestic consumption of more than 750,000tpa, according to the news agency.
Consequently, the country imports around 500,000t of copper each year to bridge this gap. In the fiscal year ending March 2024, India imported around 363,000t of refined copper cathodes, with Japan being the largest supplier.
The surge in copper imports can be traced back to the 2018 shutdown of Vedanta's Sterlite Copper smelter, which had an output of roughly 400,000t.
With the government's push towards clean energy and electric vehicles, India's copper demand is expected to double by 2030.
Last month, Adani Group was embroiled in controversy after an Aboriginal group filed a racial discrimination complaint against its Australian coal mining unit, Bravus Mining and Resources, with the Human Rights Commission.
The complaint alleges Adani employees prevented the Nagana Yarrbayn Wangan & Jagalingou Cultural Custodians from accessing springs near the Carmichael coal mine for cultural practices.
In response, a Bravus spokesperson “wholly rejected” the allegations, framing them as an attempt to prevent the company from sharing its perspective and facts about interactions with the Aboriginal group.
