PM Modi reviews progress on overseas critical mineral acquisitions, ₹1,500-crore recycling incentive scheme

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday took stock of the progress on acquisition of critical mineral assets overseas and the performance of a ₹1,500-crore incentive scheme to promote recycling of critical minerals, sources said.

The prime minister held a quarterly sectoral review of the Ministry of Mines.

Overseas asset acquisitions is seen as important for the nation’s long-term economic and strategic interests, as it aims to secure stable supply chains for high-demand critical minerals used in sectors such as electric mobility, renewable energy, electronics and defence, sources said.

The progress on the overseas asset acquisitions is aligned with national objectives to secure supply chains for high-demand minerals essential for modern industries.

Assured access to these minerals is key for supporting the country’s energy transition plans, reducing import dependence and strengthening domestic manufacturing under the ‘Make in India’ initiative, they said.

The status of availability of rare earth elements also came up for discussion during the review meeting, sources said, adding that the discussion was quite fruitful.

The prime minister also reviewed the performance of a ₹1,500-crore incentive scheme, which was approved by the Union Cabinet last year, the sources said.

The scheme aims at developing recycling capacity in the country for the separation and production of critical minerals from secondary sources.

The incentives are likely to develop at least 270 kilo tonnes of recycling capacity every year, resulting in around 40 kilo tonnes of annual critical mineral production, resulting in about ₹8,000 crore of investment and job creation — both direct and indirect — of close to 70,000.

This scheme is part of the National Critical Mineral Mission, which is aimed at building the domestic capacity and supply chain resilience in the critical mineral sector.

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The government has approved a ₹16,300-crore National Critical Mineral Mission, with a total outlay of ₹34,300 crore spread over seven years, aiming to achieve self-reliance and accelerate India’s journey towards green energy transition.

Critical minerals such as copper, lithium, nickel, cobalt and rare earth elements are essential raw materials required to fuel the growth of rapidly growing clean energy technologies.