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Hindustan Copper Ltd (HCL) has planned to raise Rs 800 crore through private placement debt instruments. In a communication to the shareholders for postal ballot, the mining and metal producer said that it proposed to issue non-convertible debentures or bonds on private placement basis “not exceeding Rs 800 crore”.
The debt fund would principally be used to part finance the company’s proposed underground mining project in Malajkhand in Madhya Pradesh. The project is to ramp up production capacity of Malanjkhand mine from present 3 million tonnes (mt) a year to 5 mt by developing an underground mine below the existing open cast mine at an estimated cost of Rs 1,856.74 crore.
Work on the project can now commence as recently HCL obtained clearances from the Standing Committee of National Board for Wild Life (NBWL). This follows conditional environment clearance in June 2013.
Meanwhile, HCL’s Surda mine in Jharkhand is still out of operation since September last year. HCL is working to obtain environmental clearance and the renewal of the mining lease for resumption of operations. Simultaneously, Indian Resources Ltd, the Surda mine developer and operator said it was negotiating with HCL for revised terms for the reopening and future operations of the mine.
The company also has taken up underground Surda mine expansion plan. This envisages increase in the depth of the mine and enhancement of production capacity from 0.4 mt to 0.9 mt. The contract for shaft sinking and allied mine development has been awarded to one of bidders in 2011. However, issues of lease renewal and fresh environment clearance needed to be sorted out for this project also.
HCL appointed Kolkata-based Mohan Ram Goenka of M R & Associates Practising Company Secretaries to act as scrutinizer for conducting the postal ballot process, which also includes optional e-voting. Voting process will remain open until the close of working hours on March 21.
On Monday, the Rs 5 HCL stock closed around 1 per cent down at 71.20 on BSE.
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