New Delhi | March 08, 2015: The government today garnered Rs 5,164 crore from the sale of two more mines to Jaypee Cement and Ambuja Cements in the ongoing coal block auction, with cumulative proceeds from the sale surging to Rs 1.57 lakh crore.
The auction for Ganeshpur mine in Jharkhand, meant for the power sector, is still on.
On the fourth day of the second tranche of auction, in fierce biddings that lasted for hours, Ambuja Cement clinched Gare-Palma Sector-IV/8 block in Chhattisgarh, while Jaypee Cement Corporation grabbed the Mandla-South block in Madhya Pradesh.
"Gare Palma IV/8 closes at (Rs) 2,291. Ambuja Cements is highest bidder. Jaypee Cement highest bidder at (Rs) 1,852 for Mandla South," coal secretary Anil Swarup said.
These two mines will contribute a cumulative Rs 5,164 crore to the state exchequer.
The Centre generated a revenue of Rs 1.52 lakh crore till yesterday that included over Rs 1 lakh crore from the auction of 19 mines in the first round.
Two more to go
Two more blocks - Utkal C and Lohari - will be put up for auction when bidding starts tomorrow. The proceeds have been calculated based on the extractable reserves and the highest bid price.
"Auction for Ganeshpur block, which is for power sector, began at 11am with Rs 100 bid. For Mandla South, the auction began at Rs 1,850 per tonne, while for Gare Palma IV/8, it started at Rs 1,675 per tonne," an official said.
During the first three days of the second tranche of auction, the government has sold nine mines mostly in the eastern states to players such as Adani, Hindalco, JSW and Jindal for Rs 43,307 crore.
The blocks sold in the second tranche are Dumri, Tara, Nerad Malegaon, Mandakini, Meral, Jitpur, Moitra, Brinda and Sasai. In the second tranche, the Centre has put up 15 blocks for sale, which are under the "ready-for-production" category.
(Source: http://www.telegraphindia.com/)