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Bhubaneswar (Orissa) : Orissa has given its nod for leasing a new bauxite mine in the state's Koraput district to state-owned National Aluminium Company Ltd (NALCO), an official said Tuesday.
The state government has leased the Potangi bauxite mine to the company and recommended it to the central government for final approval, state Steel and Mines Secretary A.M.R. Dalwai said.
The new mine which has deposits of over 70 million tonnes of bauxite is located about eight km from Nalco's existing bauxite mine at Panchapatmali hills in Koraput, some 370 km from here.
NALCO is Asia's largest integrated aluminium producer. The bauxite from Panchpatmali mine feeds its refinery at Damanjodi town.
The Panchpatmali mine, which started with over 300 million tonnes of bauxite deposits, can only last for the next 20-25 years and bauxite from the new mine was essential for the survival of the refinery, a senior company official said.
He said it will take at least three to five years to start the new mine after NALCO gets approval from the central government.
