From delays to stiff competition, why India’s overseas critical minerals quest is hitting roadblocks
A parliamentary panel on Coal, Mines and Steel flagged delays in production from five lithium brine blocks India acquired in Argentina, along with limited progress in securing other overseas critical mineral assets.
The panel's report noted prolonged timelines between negotiation and actual production start, and highlighted risks from stiff global competition for lithium assets, including South Korea's POSCO securing stakes in Australian lithium projects.
First lithium output from the Argentina blocks has reportedly slipped to around December 2030, later than the earlier expected timeline of around September 2029.
Challenges cited include the absence of a domestic value chain for processing spodumene concentrate, volatile global lithium prices, financial constraints following the Argentina acquisition, and socio-political instability affecting a Mali project that is currently on hold.
Khanij Bidesh India Limited (KABIL)
KABIL is India's nodal public sector joint venture mandated to secure overseas supplies of critical and strategic minerals for domestic use. It was incorporated on 8 August 2019 as a joint venture of three central public sector enterprises — National Aluminium Company (NALCO), Hindustan Copper Limited (HCL), and Mineral Exploration and Consultancy Limited (MECL) — in the ratio 40:30:30, operating under the Ministry of Mines.
Key Details
- KABIL's mandate covers identification, acquisition, exploration, development, mining, and processing of strategic minerals overseas, currently prioritising lithium and cobalt.
- KABIL signed India's first lithium exploration and mining agreement for five brine-based blocks in Catamarca province, Argentina (part of the South American "Lithium Triangle" spanning Argentina, Chile and Bolivia).
- KABIL's authorised capital was originally Rs 500 crore, being enhanced toward Rs 1,000 crore to support expanded overseas acquisitions; the government's stated target is 50 overseas mineral assets by March 2031.
The parliamentary panel's critique centres on KABIL's flagship Argentina lithium project — the delay from 2029 to 2030 in first production, and slow progress on assets beyond Argentina (in Australia, Chile, and the paused Mali project with Uranium One), directly tests understanding of KABIL's mandate and performance.
Critical Minerals and India's Import Dependence
Critical minerals are those essential for economic development and national security whose supply chains carry a high risk of disruption. India notified a list of 30 critical minerals in 2023 through a Ministry of Mines committee, informed by comparable lists from the US, EU, Japan, Australia and Canada. Lithium, cobalt, and rare earth elements feature prominently due to their role in EV batteries, renewable energy storage, electronics and defence applications.
Key Details
- The 30 critical minerals list includes lithium, cobalt, nickel, graphite, copper, rare earth elements (REE), niobium, tungsten and others; 24 of these have been incorporated into Part D of Schedule I of the Mines and Minerals (Development and Regulation) Act, 1957, giving the Union government exclusive authority over their auctioning.
- India currently has negligible domestic lithium reserves in production (exploratory finds exist, e.g., in Jammu & Kashmir and Rajasthan) and near-total import dependence for battery-grade lithium and processed compounds.
- The National Critical Mineral Mission (NCMM), approved in January 2025, has a seven-year outlay of about Rs 34,300 crore (2024-25 to 2030-31; Rs 16,300 crore approved by the Union Cabinet for the initial phase) to boost domestic exploration, overseas acquisition, recycling, and a strategic mineral reserve.
- Average global timeline from mine discovery to production is roughly 17.8 years (S&P Global, 2025), underlining why "prolonged negotiation-to-production timelines" is a structural, not merely India-specific, challenge.
The panel's criticism of slow progress fits into the broader NCMM framework — overseas acquisition via KABIL is one of the Mission's four pillars (alongside domestic exploration, recycling, and strategic stockpiling), and delays in the flagship Argentina project raise questions about whether India can meet its 2030-31 target of 50 overseas assets.
Global Competition for Lithium Assets
Countries are racing to lock in lithium and battery-mineral supply chains as electric vehicle and renewable storage demand grows, creating a resource-diplomacy dynamic comparable to hydrocarbons in the 20th century.
Key Details
- South Korea's POSCO Group has secured equity stakes in several Australian lithium hard-rock projects (e.g., Wodgina, Pilbara-region assets), competing directly with Indian acquisition efforts.
- China dominates global lithium refining/processing capacity even where it does not dominate raw ore mining, giving it leverage over the "midstream" of the battery supply chain that India currently lacks.
- India's Argentina blocks are brine-type deposits (extraction via evaporation ponds), which is technologically and time-wise different from Australia's hard-rock (spodumene) mining — brine extraction typically has longer lead times to commercial production.
The absence of a domestic spodumene/brine processing value chain, cited in the panel report as a bottleneck, is the same midstream gap that gives China leverage globally — reinforcing why NCMM emphasises building domestic refining capacity alongside overseas mining rights.
- KABIL incorporated 8 August 2019; JV of NALCO (40%), HCL (30%), MECL (30%); under Ministry of Mines.
- Five lithium brine blocks acquired in Catamarca, Argentina; first production timeline pushed to around December 2030 (from ~September 2029).
- Government target: 50 overseas mineral assets by March 2031.
- 30 critical minerals identified by India (2023); 24 included in Part D, Schedule I of MMDR Act, 1957.
- National Critical Mineral Mission: approved January 2025, ~Rs 34,300 crore outlay over 2024-25 to 2030-31 (Rs 16,300 crore initial Cabinet approval).
- Average global mine-to-production timeline: 17.8 years (S&P Global, 2025 study).
- POSCO (South Korea) has secured stakes in Australian lithium projects, intensifying competition for the same asset class India is pursuing.