Financial Daily from THE HINDU group of publications
Saturday, May 07, 2005
Financial Daily from THE HINDU group of publications Saturday, May 07, 2005 |
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Agri-Biz & Commodities
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Precious Metals Karnataka to study Australian co's plan for Kolar Gold Fields Our Bureau
Bangalore , May 6 THE Queensland-based Indian Mineral Corporation has sought the Karnataka Government's support to its proposal to revive Kolar Gold Fields. Karnataka would further consider the interest shown by IMC and would urge the Centre to take a speedy decision on the matter, according to the State Industry & Infrastructure Minister, Mr P.G.R. Sindhia. The Minister, who led an official delegation to Queensland and Victoria states on a week-long study tour, was briefing newspersons on his visit. The Australian company plans to recover gold from the defunct mines' tailing dumps and also to revive the once famous gold field. The proposal of IMC, which was formed in 2003, is with the Centre. KGF, where gold mining began in 1880, has been languishing ever since the Centre decided to shut down its loss-making PSU, Bharat Gold Mines Ltd, in 2001. Some 5,000 mine workers have lost jobs and most of them have migrated out of KGF. KGF is estimated to have yielded 800 tonnes of gold since mining began in 1880. The old and abandoned mines have a dozen dumps of waste, which companies such as IMC believe can yield some gold. Trade centre: The Victoria Government would set up its trade centre in Bangalore in two months. Victoria would facilitate technology transfer in biotechnology, food processing and dairying. Mr Sindhia said Queensland and Karnataka agreed to strengthen technology transfer for sugar and cane development; to enlist the support of Australia's apex R&D agency, CSIRO, for leaner mining technologies; and to have a tie-up between Southbank Institute of TAFE and Karnataka for training in nursing, catering among others. Mr Sindhia and Queensland Trade Premier, Mr Peter Beattie, renewed the Queensland-Karnataka MoU on economic relations. ONGC project: On the Rs 25,000-crore petro projects plan that ONGC has signed with the State Government, Mr Sindhia said the State would not budge and would not settle for anything less than original proposal on investment and products at Mangalore. The MoU was entered into with the full consent of the Centre and Karnataka would appeal to the Centre to keep its implementation intact. "We are willing to discuss the modalities but are not for any dilution," Mr Sindhia said. The ONGC's SEZ plan at Mangalore has been thrown into uncertainty as the Petroleum Minister, Mr Mani Shankar Aiyar, has said it should be scaled down and shared among a few other oil PSUs as partners.
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