NEW DELHI (Reuters) – India’s northern federal territory of Jammu and Kashmir will auction off a lithium block discovered last month, the country’s mines minister said on Monday in the parliament.
“The exploitation of lithium will depend on a successful auction of the mineral block,” said minister Pralhad Joshi, adding that the timetable for an auction would be decided by the Jammu and Kashmir authorities.
The block, with estimated reserves of 5.9 million tons, is the first known lithium reserve in the country.
(Reporting by Sakshi Dayal; Editing by Krishna N. Das)
