NMDC Limited has set an ambitious target of almost doubling its annual iron ore mining capacity to 75 million tonnes in the next two years compared to its current capacity of around 34 million tonnes. The public sector company produced 30.4 million tonnes in the last financial year.

The target is part of NMDC’s Vision 2025 plan that seeks to reorient its business model, retain market leadership in the domestic market and make a mark on the global mining scene in order to ensure raw material security for Indian industry.

NMDC’s CMD Narendra Kothari said apart from increasing annual mining capacity to 75 million tonnes by 2018-19 and to 100 million tonnes by 2021-22, Vision 2025 sets the objectives of strengthening exploration and forward-integration through value added business in pellet making and steel as well as selectively investing abroad based on mining potential and the prevailing business environment.

He expressed confidence in the growth of India’s steel industry and expressed NMDC’s intent to align its operations with the growth of the domestic steel industry, capitalizing on its growth potential in the years to come ‘that would translate into higher domestic appetite for iron ore’.

Besides addition of capacity, he said. “Vision 2025 set the objectives of strengthening exploration and forward-integration through value added businesses in pellet making and steel, strategically diversifying into commodities other than iron ore based on growth potential and its relevance to NMDC and significance to the country, and selectively invest abroad based on mining potential and the prevailing business environment.”

NMDC’s new road map has six strategic areas - business strategy, operations strategy, sustainability, capital projects, human resource and IT.

Recently the company incorporated Jharkhand Kolhan Steel, a wholly-owned subsidiary company, to facilitate development of a steel plant in the state of Jharkhand. The company said it would build the steel facility through the special-purpose-vehicle (SPV) route.

NMDC was formed in 1958 as a Government of India fully-owned public enterprise and is the nation’s single largest iron ore producer, presently producing from three fully mechanized mines - Bailadila Deposit-14/11C and Bailadila Deposit-5, 10/11A in Chhattisgarh State and Donimalai Iron Ore Mines in Karnataka State.

Since its inception NMDC has been involved in exploration for a wide range of minerals including iron ore, copper, rock phosphate, limestone, dolomite, gypsum, bentonite, magnesite, diamond, tin, tungsten, graphite and beach sands.