CHAIRMAN'S VISIT TO YPO, JAIPUR AND HZL, UDAIPUR

Chairman, Vedanta Group - Mr. Anil Agarwal was in Jaipur to address the YPO members (Young Presidents’ Organization) on 8th December 2017. 

He also visited Udaipur and interacted with over 60 employees including senior management of Hindustan Zinc in a workshop on 9th December 2017.

It was a memorable day filled with energy, enthusiasm and inspired all the employees.

He also met the special children of Jeevan Tarang.

ASK FOR ZINC - FOREVER IN BLOOM – LOTUS TEMPLE IN DELHI…

The Bahai or Lotus Temple in Delhi, completed in the year 1986, is a monumental structure shaped as the petals of the lotus flower. It was built by a renowned Canadian architect named Fariborz Sahba and took 10 years for planning the structure of the temple and implementing it.
The petals of the Lotus temple of Delhi are clad in white marble panels, and their structure has been reinforced with 300 tonnes of galvanized bars to avoid the risk of rust staining on the white concrete body. This also helped to maintain the pristine appearance of the monument and avoid cracking which is prevalent in Delhi because of the humid conditions of the city. Also, the reinforcement used in the white concrete shells, the binding wires and the connecting cables are entirely galvanized so as to prevent the long-term effects of rusting and to guarantee the life of the delicate shell structure of the petals.
Lotus temple is one of the best pieces of art of olden times, that has stood the test of time till today. The monument remains one of the major attractions and a prominent landmark which has won numerous architectural awards. Hundreds of millions of devotees from across the world have already visited Lotus temple and the structure is made to see many more millions in the coming hundreds of years.
Another example of “we all have ZINC in our lives…”

ASK FOR ZINC - SOME IGNORANCES ARE NOT BLISS

Though we started this initiative to explore usages of Zinc, but with every research on Zinc, our trust on this metal is only increasing. My curiosity has lead me to search for Zinc in everything I use or consume. It is not about identifying the health problems or corrosion issues, it's about why certain health problems are preventable or early curable, and why, corrosion did not take place across number of buildings, bridges, electrical poles, automobiles and temples in so many decades.

We don't use toothpaste anymore that does not have Zinc. While taking any multi-vitamin, antiseptic, oral care medicines, we make sure it has Zinc in it. It is a tonic for my skin, nutrition, strength to paints and for healthy hair. While buying any steel item, post verifying SS symbol, the next question is whether it has Zinc coating or not. 

We have become spokespersons for Zinc. Our watches, mobiles and other equipment, using batteries, has to have only Zinc batteries. The usage of Zinc in the Moon Buggy and in Spacecrafts is only justification of the trust and respect this metal governs across various usages.

For once, I am continuously exploring properties and usages of Zinc, and not because I work for Hindustan Zinc.

Why this metal is the 4th most sought after metal is now understood. Why mankind searched for it in ancient times so rigorously is also known now. The only difference is, in the ancient times the wisdom was more predominant than today, as today, the benefits of Zinc have been further identified and explored.

And now since I know, I ASK FOR ZINC. Truly, Zinc is in our lives. So live with it, why without it.

Wondering, even after knowing so much, approximately 1/3rd of the world's population lives in areas of high-risk of Zinc deficiency.

Some ignorances are not bliss…

 By Pavan Kaushik

Hindustan Zinc awarded SEEM National Energy Management Award 2016

Energy efficiency has always been one of the top priorities for Hindustan Zinc.

In recognition of these efforts, Hindustan Zinc’s DSC CPP won SEEM National Energy Management Award 2016 under Power Plant Industries Category for implementation of various power saving projects for reducing the specific energy consumption. The Award was given by  Mr. K.K. Chakraborthy - Energy Economist and Dr. Jayant Sathaye - 2007 Nobel Peace Prize Winning team member, University  of California, Berkeley in a glittering award ceremony held on 26th May 2017 at Ahmedabad Management Association (AMA) Hall, Ahmedabad. 

Hindustan Zinc has Thermal Captive Power Plants located at Chanderiya, Dariba and Zawar with a total power generation capacity of 474 MW.The Company has green energy farms with 274 MW of power generation capacity in Gujarat, Karnataka, Rajasthan, Tamil Nadu and Maharashtra.  Mr. A.K. Singh - General Manager, CPP and Mr. Rupak Sarkar - Associate Manager, CPP  from DSC CPP received the Award on behalf of Hindustan Zinc. 

ASK FOR ZINC - ULTIMATELY ALL THE EXPLORATION STARTED WITH A ROCK… SOMEONE FOUND IT AND SOMEONE USED IT… AND SOME BUILT A CIVILIZATION…

Mining Industry dates back to the dawn of civilization, and is often considered as an Ancient Industry. Indus Valley civilization showed the signs of copper, bronze, silver, gold but not iron..  Under the series of Ask for Zinc, we bring to you the innovations in the mining industry in various domains like exploration, ore deposit definition, extraction & processing, transport & communications, health, safety and mine reclamation.

INVERSION ALGORITHM - Innovations in Exploration

In mining, the first step is to discover an economically viable deposit with the help of a combination of activities collectively known as Exploration. For this, geologists search for mineral deposits in remote areas. Methods such as geological surface mapping and sampling, geophysical measurements and geochemical analysis are often applied at an early stage to pin out potential deposits.

Among these methods, geophysics is traditionally used to predict the position of a mineralized body by seeking out anomalies in the magnetic field, gravitational field or electrical conductivity etc. Inversion algorithms allow geophysical data to be used in an advanced way. It first establishes the geophysical properties of the rocks and then measures their geophysical signatures in the field, thus making it possible to generate 3D models of their potential mineralization and surrounding geological environment. Inversion algorithm enables resource explorers to extract more insight from geophysical data by converting geophysical measurements into 3D images of the subsurface that can be integrated with other surface and subsurface geologic observations.

Over the past decade, inversion algorithm has proved its effectiveness in exploring various ore deposits and major oil reserves around the world. The major examples being - iron ore and nickel belts of Western Australia - iron oxide-copper-gold in Africa, South America and Australia – copper deposits in Mongolia - nickel laterite in Colombia. Within the oil industry, inversion algorithm has reduced uncertainty when exploring the dense sedimentary section that surrounds the salt bodies in the Gulf of Mexico, and also offshore West Africa and South America where the geology is more complex and less predictable. 

HINDUSTAN ZINC SET TO INVEST RS. 8000 CRORE BEGINNING GOLDEN JUBILEE

Hindustan Zinc that completes its 50 years of existence on 10^th January 2016, is India’s only the world’s leading integrated zinc-lead-silver producer

As Hindustan Zinc, a Vedanta Group company in Zinc-Lead-Silver business celebrates its Golden Jubilee, completing 50 years of its existence; the company is all set for its next phase of expansion of its mining and smelting operations with an investment of Rs.8000 crore.

Hindustan Zinc is looking to expand its all operations in a time-frame of 3-5 years, taking current ore production levels of 9.36 MTPA to 14.00 MTPA and finished metal production levels from 0.85 MTPA to 1.10 MTPA.

The Company has its mines located in Agucha, Sindesar Khurd, Zawar, Rajpura Dariba, and Kayad, all in Rajasthan.  The smelters are located in Dariba, Chanderiya and Debari, also in Rajasthan. 

Hindustan Zinc which was formed under an Act of Parliament on 10^th January 1966 is India’s only and the world’s leading integrated zinc-lead-silver producing company.

Anil Agarwal, the Chairman of Vedanta Group, has expressed his happiness towards providing zinc sufficiency to India. “When we acquired Hindustan Zinc as part of Government disinvestment program in 2002, our focus was to make India self-sufficient in zinc. We are very proud that by adopting latest environment friendly technology, large investment in capacity expansions and continuous exploration, Hindustan Zinc is able to increase the production five-fold and yet have reserves for another 30 years”, he said.

The turning point came when in the year 2002, under the disinvestment program by the government, Hindustan Zinc was acquired by Sterlite. Since then, the company has grown multi-fold. The metal production capacity is 1 million tonne in the year today from about 200,000 tonne in 2002. The mine production capacity has also increased to 10.25 million tonne today from 3.45 million tonne in 2002.

The reserves and resources, which were 143.7 million tonnes in the year 2002 today stand at 375.1 million tonne after consuming reserves for about 14 years. The philosophy of the company on exploration has been to add equal reserve for every tonne of ore mined.

The investment of Rs. 12,000 crore in the past years have brought many changes in not just asset optimization but also building new facilities into the business to give value to the shareholders.  At the time of disinvestment, Hindustan Zinc did not have captive power generation or wind energy farms. Today the company produces 474 MW of captive thermal power and 274 MW of wind energy.

The turnover of the company has also seen a turn-around, from mere Rs. 1,200 crore in the year 2002 to more than Rs. 14,500 crore in the year 2014-15. The profit too has jumped from just Rs. 68 crore in the year 2002 to Rs. 8,178 crore in the year 2014-15.

The contribution to the exchequer has also seen significant change, which increased from Rs. 364 crore in the year 2002 to more than Rs. 5,000 crore in 2014-15.

“Though the zinc mining in India dates back to over 2500 years old, and the retorts of ancient mining can still be seen at Zawar, about 45 km from Udaipur; the zinc as a metal has been not much known or utilized in India. We are still exploring the new areas where zinc could add value to consumers and also add in the GDP of the country. We are exploring the possibilities of galvanizing of car bodies and structures to increase their life-span accordingly”, said Sunil Duggal, the Chief Executive Officer of Hindustan Zinc.

Hindustan Zinc is also looking to set-up a new Fertilizer Plant with a capacity to manufacture 0.5 MTPA of Di-Ammonium Phosphate in Debari in district Udaipur with an estimated investment of Rs. 1350 crores.

As the company celebrates its Golden Jubilee year, it is all set to invest another Rs. 8000 crore in the coming 3-5 years on expansions of its mines and smelting operations.

GOLDEN JUBILEE OF HINDUSTAN ZINC - 50 GLORIOUS YEARS OF BEING ZINC OF INDIA

The story of Hindustan Zinc that celebrates its Golden Jubilee, from the days of PSU, to post disinvestment, a Vedanta Group company. A journey of a company that is the world’s leading integrated zinc producer today...

Zinc mining is not new in India. The traces of zinc mining in India can be seen at Zawar, about 40 kms from the city of lakes, Udaipur in Rajasthan. Zawarmala mine at Zawar is an ancient mine which as per the radio carbon dating is over 2500 years old. The ancient retorts can still be seen while going towards the Zawar mines. The history of Zinc-Lead production in India goes back to its roots in 1942 when a small Lead smelting pilot plant was set-up at Tundoo, near Dhanbad in Bihar.

In 1944 the Metal Corporation of India was formed and all the assets of the company were transferred to MCI. In 1945 Government of India surrendered the mining rights over Zawar to Mewar Durbar and in the same year Metal Corporation of India obtained the prospecting license for 2 years, and later got mining lease in 1950.

In 1960 Metal Corporation of India obtained license for production of 9,000 tonnes per annum of Lead and 540,000ozs of silver. In 1965 the Government of India proposed nationalization of Zinc-Lead mining and smelting, and an MCI was nationalized by an Act of Parliament.

It was 10th January 1966, a new era began, when Hindustan Zinc Limited was incorporated in Rajasthan and in the same year, foundation of Debari Smelter was also laid down, with a modest target of 18,000 tonnes per annum of Zinc. In 1972, 1st expansion programme of Hindustan Zinc launched to increase the capacity at Debari smelter.  Simultaneously Balaria mine at Zawar was also put on course to develop to meet the increasing requirement of zinc concentrate.

Year 1976, was a historical day when Hindustan Zinc posted a profit of Rs. 10 crore. In 1976 only, to give impetus to research and development, Hindustan Zinc established its Central Research & Development Laboratory (CRDL), and from this day, metal recoveries and optimization of waste became a priority.

In 1978, Vizag Smelter got commissioned and Zinc production started through imported concentrate. The year also saw commissioning of Balaria mine at Zawar. In 1978, the Agnigundla Lead mine was taken over from Hindustan Copper Limited with a production capacity of 300Tpd Lead – Zinc ore. This mine was closed in year 2002 because of unviable operation.

History was about to be unveiled for India when in 1979 origin of Rampura Agucha mine was traced. Hindustan Zinc acquired the mining rights of Rampura Agucha mine and in 1980 1st exploration hole at Rampura Agucha was performed. The feasibility report came in about 20 months and suggested development of 3000 tonnes of mining per day. Zinc-Lead mining in India was all set to make a mark in international market.

Sargipali Lead mine in Sundergarh district of Odisha was commissioned in the year 1983 with the production capacity of 500 tonnes per day Lead ore. Later on, it was closed in the year 2001 because of the exhaustion of the reserves. This also brought a challenge to expand the capacities of Zinc-Lead smelting operations. Meanwhile in 1984 Rajpura Dariba mine was also commissioned. 1989 was a historical year when production from Rampura Agucha was commissioned.

In 1991 Hindustan Zinc commissioned out its first blast furnace based on Pyro-Smelting Technology at Chanderiya. To match the growing demand of Zinc-Lead in India, Hindustan Zinc, in the year 1994, carried out the Pillar Blast at Mochia mine in Zawar.  The meticulously planned blast was one of the rare incidents not only for India but for the entire Asia.  8 major blasts were done during the span of 1986-2004 and the biggest blast was executed on 13th June 1994 that resulted in generation of 550,000 tonnes of ore.

It was also decided to develop Sindesar Khurd deposits, in the year 1997. In the same year a Zinc Smelter with a capacity of 60,000 to 100,000 tonnes was also planned. Mining probabilities at Ajmer district were also explored in the same year. History was again made in the year 1999 when Hindustan Zinc became a ‘debt free company’.

The journey from 1966 to 1999 has been a journey that laid the foundation of mechanised Zinc-Lead mining and smelting in India. But the world was moving ahead in production and capacities and it was time for the government to look for disinvestment in public sector units which had potential to grow further but were lacking due to funds and resources.

It was 10th April 2002 – a landmark decision privatized Hindustan Zinc and Sterlite Group was declared successful bidder for acquiring 26% equity in Hindustan Zinc. The result was evident, in the year 2003, Hindustan Zinc registered 113.58% growth in its profit. The journey for making Hindustan Zinc a world class asset had begun. In the year 2004, 35,000 tonnes of Zinc de-bottlenecking was completed at Chanderiya Smelting Complex.

Year 2005 was coming out to be an year of expansions and commissions. The year saw commissioning of Hydro-I Zinc Smelter at Chanderiya Smelting Complex with a production capacity of 170,000 tonnes per annum. Two captive power plants of 77 MW each were also commissioned during the same year and in the same year Rampura Agucha Mine was expanded from 2.30 Million tonnes per annum to 3.75 million tonnes per annum.

This expansion made Hindustan Zinc the world’s 3rd largest integrated zinc producer. An achievement that made the entire world look at India as the new leader in zinc production. To address the growing need for Lead in India, in the year 2006, the Company commissioned a 50,000 tonnes per annum Ausmelt Lead Smelter at Chanderiya Smelting Complex.

In the year 2007, Sindesar Khurd Mine began production with an initial capacity of 0.3 million tonne per annum. Another landmark decision surprised the world when Hindustan Zinc entered into green energy by commissioning 38.4 MW of Wind Energy Farms in Gujarat.

The production of zinc was all set to improve further when in the year 2008 Hindustan Zinc commissioned Hydro-II, and made a world record by commissioning a smelter in flat 20 months. Simultaneously Company also commissioned an 80 MW of captive power generation unit at Chanderiya. In the same year another 50,4 MW of wind energy farms were commissioned in Gujarat.

Year 2009 again became a historical year for expansions. Rampura Agucha mine this year got expanded to 5.00 million tonnes per annum from 3.75 million tonne capacity. Debottlenecking at Chanderiya and Debari increased metal production capacity by 88,000 tonnes per annum. The year also increased Company’s thermal power generation capacity for captive use by commissioning of 80 MW Captive Power Plant at Zawar. Wind energy farms get another commissioning with 34.4 MW, taking the total capacity to 123.2 MW. The year 2009 made Hindustan Zinc the World’s 2nd Largest Integrated Zinc Producer.

The growing international demand for Zinc-Lead made Hindustan Zinc successfully complete another expansion phase. In the year 2010 the Company further expanded its mining capacity to 6.00 Million tonnes per annum at Rampura Agucha from 5.00 Million tonnes. With this the mining capacities of Hindustan Zinc increased to 8.40 million tonnes per annum.

With growing mining activity it was necessary to also increase the smelting capacities. Hydro-III with 210,000 tonnes per annum was commission at Rajpura Dariba. With this the metal production capacity increased to 964,000 tonnes per annum, which included 879,000 of zinc and 85,000 of lead.

2010 was the was the year when Hindustan Zinc became a world leader, the world’s largest Integrated Zinc Producing company, a strategic and landmark position for India. The company carried out a first ever intensive Heliborne Survey in 2010.

In the year 2011, 2.00Mtpa capacity silver-rich Sindesar Khurd mine got commissioned, bringing a new ray of hope in Silver production and underground mining technology in India. To give support to Dariba Zinc Smelter, the company commissioned 160 MW of thermal power units. Wind energy was also increased by 48.7 MW. To give further focus to Lead production, Hindustan Zinc commission 100,000 tonnes per annum Lead Smelter at Dariba, increasing the Lead production capacity to 185,000 tonnes per annum. 

The wind energy got a further boost by commission of 101.6 MW wind farms and now the project included states of Rajasthan, Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu, and Karnataka besides Gujarat, taking the wind power generation capacity to about 273.5 MW. With growing need for underground mining at Rampura Agucha, in the Year 2012, the company started developing underground mining work at Rampura Agucha and simultaneously green-field Kayar mine.

In the year 2013 the production of developmental ore from Rampura Agucha underground mine and Kayad underground mine started. The company also initiated the expansion work at other mines.Recently Hindustan Zinc has signed MoU with the Rajasthan Government under the Resurgent Rajasthan to invest Rs 8,357 crore in the next 3-5 years towards expansion of its mines and smelting capacities.

The target is set for the future to increase mine production to 12.80 million tonne from the current level of 9.09 million tonne per annum, and finished metal production to 1.028 million tonne from current level of 0.85 million tonne per annum.

14,000 people work in Hindustan Zinc today which has about 20% female employees (in fresh intake). The focus is on state-of-the-art environment friendly technology, a strong vendor-supplier base, and a strong foot in Indian Zinc-Lead market with over 80% domestic market share. Sustainability and care for the community is on utmost priority. Speak to the people who have worked in the past or working at present for the Company, and they would instantly say, ‘they own the company’.

BUSINESS STANDARD : SETTING THE AGENDA - CEO WISH LIST

MAY 13^th, 2014

CEO WISH LIST 

India Inc’s prescription Anil Agarwal, Chairman - Vedanta Group

We look at a few things that might top its to- do list:

AUCTION NATURAL RESOURCES

This could generate more funds, improve the employment scene and help fight poverty 

CLEAR ECONOMIC STRUCTURE

Transparent and simplified economic structure needed; should inspire global confidence in India’s policies, commitment and government support.

INVEST MORE IN E & P

Exploration & production (E& P) and development of natural resources will eradicate poverty & unemployment 

SELL PSUs 

Government should divest 51% in 250 state and central PSUs, with a caveat that no one can own more than 10% in these companies 

INVEST IN CHILD CARE

Could generate more funds and employment to help fight poverty. 

MANUFACTURING & INVESTMENTS

A new government will soon be taking on the various challenges facing the Indian economy. 

Kick- starting the National Manufacturing Policy. 

It was rolled out in 2011 but failed to bring in required investment

Increasing the share of manufacturing in gross domestic product. 

The share has fallen to 15%, while the NMP aims to increase it to 25% by 2020.

Boosting foreign direct investment ( FDI) inflows, which has dwindled over the past few years. 

Reviewing the FDI policy for multi- brand retailing. It has failed to rope in big investors.

Should allow FDI in railways, real estate and e- commerce. These got stalled due to the impending elections.

HOPES ARE HIGH ON THE NEW GOVERNMENT WHICH SHOULD BOOST THE ECONOMY

THE ECONOMIC TIMES
DELHI EDITION – EDITORIAL PAGE | 12^th MAY 2014
 
By Anil Agarwal
 
Chanakya said about 2,300 years ago, "In the absence of fruitful economic activity, both current prosperity and future growth are in danger of destruction". India is the world's third largest economy.
 
But uncertainty prevails towards large national projects. We have a rising import bill of about $500 billion and are losing opportunities to explore, produce and utilize our natural resources.
 
Here is what the new government should do.
 
India's falling GDP is primarily a function of manufacturing slowdown. Though India has abundant reserves of bauxite, coal, iron ore, copper and gold, it is spending billions of dollars on imports. Hundreds and thousands of large, medium and small scale industries can be set up across the nation to process our raw material and further manufacturing, which can create 10-15 crore jobs and infrastructure.
 
Energy security is a key priority. We need another 20 large companies to enter the energy sector to unlock its potential. The supply of coal through a single company is hampering power generation.
 
Auctions The Only Way
We must auction natural resources in the most sustainable and transparent manner, on a revenue sharing basis or highest royalty. Also, encourage Indian entrepreneurs who will bring world-class technology, build modern plants and big investments in our country. Only this will ensure the highest standards of environment, health and safety. Unleash the hidden potential of public sector units (PSUs) by divesting 51% stake in each of them. In most democratic countries, the government does not run businesses. In India public sector companies can grow 10 times bigger if we divest at least 51% of their stake and sell them to the public at large.
 
Divestment should be such that no institution or individual can hold more than 10% of equity. Employees must be guaranteed their jobs and stock options to participate in the upside of the company's performance. We can find many successful examples like Larsen & Toubro, HDFC Bank, BSE 1.82 %, ICICI Bank, BSE 1.38 % and ITCBSE 1.71 %, which are not owner driven but CEO driven companies. ONGCBSE 2.56 % can become another Exxon, and SAILBSE 0.43 % can become another Vale.
  

Dig Deeper
The government should form a new ministry of natural resource development. To strengthen the country's economy, we must form a single large ministry to deal with development of all natural resources, and bring oil and gas, mines, coal and steel under a single umbrella and under a strong visionary leader. This new ministry of natural resources would look into the optimum development of our precious mineral resources.
 
The government should end discrimination between the public and private sectors. In recent incidents, ONGC has been allowed to explore shale gas while the private sector companies are awaiting approvals.
 
Despite the iron ore mining ban in Goa and Karnataka (now lifted), NMDC (BSE 0.63 %) has been continuing mining of iron ore. Similarly, Power Grid Corporation of India (BSE 0.66 %) is reaping the benefits of being a public sector firm in the transmission business while private players are struggling.
 
Nalco is exporting alumina at much lower rate than being offered by domestic companies. Discrimination only hurts business sentiments and sends a wrong signal to the community of global investors.
 
Simplify The Rules
The government should reinforce its focus on women and child development. Two thirds of our population are children and women and their priorities like education, nutrition and health have to be addressed.
 
Rural women have immense potential to adopt and develop the liberal arts and make that a regular source of livelihood. Our women must become socially and economically empowered. For the dignity of our rural women, it is also important to it is also important to construct household toilets in each rural house.
India has the largest number of children in the world, with 160 million children of less than six years of age. Around 50% of them are malnourished. The 14 lakh government run Anganwadis need a transformation.
  
Infrastructure, education, water and sanitation, sufficient nutrition, and regular health checkups are necessary. We need a visionary minister to achieve all this. Bring in public-private partnerships ( PPP) in this area.
 
The country needs a simpler regulatory framework, based on transparent policies and processes with emphasis on self-declaration and strong deterrents and penalties for non compliance.
 
India is well positioned to become a powerhouse, and over a period of time the above measures can generate additional revenue of $1 trillion for the economy. People have high hopes from the new government, and so has every section of industry. 

INDIA HAS ABUNDANT NATURAL RESOURCES; ALL IT NEEDS IS REFORM: ANIL AGARWAL

Interview of Mr. Anil Agarwal, Chairman – Vedanta Group
Published in Business Today, Issue: April 2014 

Billionaire industrialist Anil Agarwal has been facing a number of problems to expand his businesses in India. The government in January rejected environment approval to his Vedanta Group's proposed bauxite mining project in Odisha's Niyamgiri hills and has also been dragging its feet on allowing its Cairn India unit to expand its exploration activities. Still, Agarwal believes India has tremendous growth potential. In a conversation with Arunima Mishra at the India Today Conclave 2014, Agarwal says India must encourage mining and manufacturing to boost economic growth and hopes that the new government that will take charge after the General Election due in May will provide strong and decisive leadership. Edited excerpts:

Q. How does Vedanta plan to make the Lanjigarh aluminium plant in Odisha fully operational now that the government has rejected environment approval to bauxite mining in Niyamgiri hills?
A. It's a small thing [for Vedanta]? Not even a blade of grass has moved there as we have been talking about it for 10 years now... Aluminium is an important material for India. It's a material that can bring tremendous prosperity for India. If we produce aluminium it can provide employment to five crore people. We [Vedanta] have created a capacity of 30 lakh tonnes [but] we are running at 40 per cent capacity.
It [the Lanjigarh plant in Kalahandi district of Odisha] is a national asset and we expect our bauxite problems to be resolved... Late Biju Patnaik [former chief minister of Odisha] had one feeling in his heart that the stigma of Kalahandi can be eradicated only by setting up an industry there. We have set up that unit spending Rs 50,000 crore in Odisha. When I went there 10 years back, it was? worse than Andaman and Nicobar Islands. Today if you go, there's prosperity and the only industry there is our industry. It's a development model.

Q. So, what's your Plan B for the plant?
A. They [state-run Odisha Mining Corporation, a joint venture partner for bauxite mining] are doing whatever they can do. We are not interested in Niyamgiri. We need bauxite. We need our food.

Q. Do you think any corporate rivalry resulted in the no-mining status for Niyamgiri hills?
A. No. There has been no corporate rivalry... There's so much to be done in India [but] who has the courage to do it? We need more industry people to come forward and do it.

Q. There's speculation Cairn India would be merged with Sesa Sterlite. Is it true?
A. There's no [such] plan at the moment.

Q. Is there any update on the government's decision to sell its residual stake in Hindustan Zinc and Bharat Aluminium Company?
A. The status is same. We have created tremendous value... The government has all the inclination to give us the [remaining] share. It's a model that is a win-win situation where the government value of Rs 500 crore has gone over Rs 15,000 crore. So, it shows this model created value. It's very important that the government takes the view and moves forward.

Q. Are Vedanta's mining projects running the way you wanted them to be?
A. Our mining projects are not running the way we wanted. We want a reformation to take place in the oil sector. Cairn India has given Rs 24,000 crore as royalty and taxes, which is the highest in the corporate sphere. These are the priority sectors... the government is working with us. We want more production to take place.

Q. How acute is the energy security problem in India?
A. We have abundant amount of these resources [oil, gas and coal]. We are spending almost $200 billion on [importing] these. These can all be produced in India. Let world-class people come and develop our resources that can be used to generate electricity. India has abundant natural resources. All it needs is reform.

Q. What reform measures do you suggest the government should take?
A. Two things. First, our natural resources ' we must produce 50 per cent of gas and oil in India. Auction the natural resources in a transparent manner just like the 2G [second-generation telecom] spectrum auction has been done. The government will get funds, things will get faster. The whole world will be confident that they can come and invest in India.

Second, the reform agenda should be selling majority stakes in public-sector companies. It will be like America where all corporations are run by a CEO and the owner is a shareholder who can pull up the management. All these companies will be 10 times bigger and they can employ seven to eight crore people in the public sector when there's an independent CEO, not a government official... If the petroleum and mines ministries undertake reform in a simple manner, huge employment will be generated, tremendous growth will take place and huge investment will come. It will be transparent and it will be governance-oriented. New airports and telecom companies are running like that.

Q. What are your expectations from the new government?
A. It is very important to eradicate poverty and create jobs. One of the biggest things that can be done to create jobs is to boost manufacturing and develop our natural resources. Maximum employment can take place in the mining sector or processing those minerals and in manufacturing. I would like to see strong leadership in governance.

Q. What's your view on the Bharatiya Janata Party's prime ministerial candidate Narendra Modi as he too talks a lot about manufacturing and business?
A. We are out of politics. We are like a bird and we will go anywhere.