Key Details
The Standing Committee on Coal, Mines and Steel’s Twenty-Ninth Report, KABIL: India’s Quest for Global Critical Minerals, shifts attention from the number of overseas engagements to their conversion into operational projects. Its central finding is that KABIL’s mandate has expanded faster than its financial, staffing and execution capacity.
Indicator | What the Committee Found |
|---|---|
Overseas assets | KABIL has acquired exploration rights over five lithium-brine blocks in Argentina; seven more blocks and two projects are under consideration |
Argentina timeline | Production from the Catamarca blocks is now expected around 2030 following regulatory, environmental and operational delays |
Australia | More than 200 opportunities were assessed and nine shortlisted, but due diligence has not yet produced an investment |
Staffing | Only 7 of 17 sanctioned posts were filled as of 4 June 2026; selection for three additional posts had recently concluded |
Finances | KABIL spent ₹33.19 crore during 2023–24 to 2025–26, earned ₹14.73 crore from other income and accumulated a deficit of ₹16.61 crore |
Capital proposal | Its authorised capital is proposed to rise from ₹500 crore to ₹1,000 crore, alongside a revised NALCO–HCL–MECL ownership ratio of 60:35:5 |
National target | The National Critical Mineral Mission seeks the acquisition of 50 overseas assets by public and private entities by March 2031 |
KABIL Has Secured a Foothold, Not Yet a Mineral Supply
Khanij Bidesh India Limited (KABIL) was established in 2019 by NALCO, Hindustan Copper and Mineral Exploration and Consultancy Limited to identify, acquire, develop, mine, process and procure critical minerals overseas.
Its most concrete progress is in Argentina, where it holds exclusive exploration rights over five lithium-brine blocks in Catamarca. Non-invasive exploration is complete, environmental approval for invasive work has been obtained and preparations for drilling have advanced.
Production, however, is now expected only by 2030, illustrating the gap between securing exploration rights and obtaining mineral supply. The Committee calls for milestone-based monitoring, clearer accountability and sustained engagement with Argentine authorities and local communities.
Elsewhere, progress remains preliminary. Screening and due diligence in Australia have not produced an investment, while engagements in Brazil, Canada, Indonesia, Malawi and other countries remain largely under evaluation or negotiation. A proposed rare-earth investment in Vietnam ended when the seller withdrew.
Institutional Capacity Has Not Kept Pace With the Mandate
KABIL remains dependent on equity from its promoter companies and has yet to begin revenue-generating operations. Its projected expenditure of around ₹200 crore over the next three years is also expected to be equity-funded because debt is currently considered costly.
The Committee supports making KABIL a NALCO subsidiary, but cautions that restructuring alone will not resolve its constraints. It wants an assessment of whether NALCO has the financial capacity and international project-management expertise required for a larger overseas acquisition programme.
Staffing is another constraint: fewer than half of KABIL’s sanctioned positions were filled by June 2026, despite overseas transactions requiring geological, technical, financial, legal and country-risk expertise. The Committee seeks a time-bound staffing plan and periodic independent performance audits.
Acquisition Alone Will Not Deliver Mineral Security
Overseas mineral rights must connect with processing, recycling and assured domestic demand. Otherwise, dependence can shift from foreign mines to foreign processing facilities.
The Committee identifies four priorities:
build domestic refining, chemical-processing and battery-material capacity;
establish mineral-recovery targets for batteries, e-waste and industrial scrap;
secure long-term offtake agreements with Indian users, including cathode-material manufacturers; and
create a dedicated rare-earth acquisition pipeline, particularly for magnetic rare earths used in permanent magnets, EVs and defence equipment.
What Is an Offtake Agreement? It is an advance agreement to purchase part of a project’s future production, allowing access to mineral supply without requiring full ownership of the mine.
Competitive Mineral Deals Require Faster Decisions
Critical-mineral assets can attract competing bids from state-backed and better-capitalised international players. The Committee warns that opportunities may be lost when Indian public enterprises must negotiate consortium arrangements and obtain multiple approvals for each transaction.
It recommends predefined consortium governance, faster approval mechanisms and a dedicated Ministry of Mines unit to track acquisitions, resolve inter-agency issues and monitor deadlines.
The KABIL–GAIL agreement is presented as a possible model for bringing the capital and project capabilities of financially stronger public enterprises into overseas mineral acquisitions, even where mining is not their core business.
Policy Relevance
The delivery gap is now measurable. Five exploration blocks represent progress, but the 2031 national target requires a much larger pipeline of completed acquisitions, offtake contracts and producing projects.
KABIL’s financial architecture may determine its competitiveness. A higher authorised capital will help only if it is accompanied by readily deployable funding and faster approvals for time-sensitive bids.
Mineral diplomacy needs transaction-level outcomes. India participates in several bilateral and multilateral critical-mineral platforms; their value should be assessed through assets identified, finance mobilised and technologies transferred.
Supply security extends beyond ownership of mines. Processing capacity, recycling systems and domestic buyers will determine whether overseas resources can be converted into dependable inputs for batteries, renewable energy, electronics and defence.
Lithium cannot remain the dominant focus. A dedicated strategy for magnetic rare earths, graphite and other supply-constrained minerals would better align overseas investment with India’s industrial and strategic requirements.
Follow the Full Report Here: KABIL: India’s Quest for Global Critical Minerals—Twenty-Ninth Report of the Standing Committee on Coal, Mines and Steel