India’s Goa to sell 1.2m tonnes of iron ore in second e-auction

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Twelve bidders, mostly traders, had registered with the Director of Mining & Geology in Goa ahead of the sale.

The first e-auction, on February 17, saw ten participants bid for 500,000 tonnes of iron ore.

Most of the material sold in the first e-auction was destined for China, a source told Steel First in Goa on Wednesday.

The lower grade Goan ore in the second e-auction, rated at 45.54-59% Fe, is less favoured for local steel production, he added.

Bans on mining in Goa in place since September 2012 have stalled production in what is one of India’s key iron ore-producing states.

The local government’s initiative to e-auction as much as 15 million tonnes of iron ore has helped reduce inventories among the region’s miners, however, while hopes remain that Goa’s mining embargo will come to an end in the next few months.