India exploring critical minerals in Zambia, Congo and Australia

The government of India conducts aggressive mineral exploration activities in Zambia and Congo and Australia to acquire lithium resources for energy transition due to their vital significance. The mining initiative managed by the Ministry of Mines serves as a national strategy to make India less dependent on imported minerals while promoting domestic sector autonomy.

Key Developments

Exploration in Africa and Australia

• The government of Zambia opened a 9,000 square kilometre exploration zone for Indian entities to prospect cobalt and copper resources.

• The country explores potential mining prospects in the regions of Congo and Tanzania.

• The Australian lithium and critical mineral explorations are conducted by Coal India alongside NMDC and ONGC Videsh Limited.

Domestic Lithium Reserves

• India made its historical discovery of lithium resources in Jammu and Kashmir during 2023 amounting to 5.9 million metric tons.

• Lithium mining activities will start soon for the government but private companies have not shown commitment.

• The government plans to make an important decision regarding lithium exploration in Jammu and Kashmir before the month of May 2025 arrives.

About Lithium

General Characteristics:

• Lithium stands as a chemical element which holds atomic number 3.

• Among the known elements it maintains the lightest solid form while belonging to the alkali metal classification.

• Lithium displays a lustrous white appearance along with softness while it behaves extremely reactive to water.

• The material exhibits body-centered cubic configuration in its crystalline structure.

Occurrence & Reserves:

• Lithium exists in the crust of Earth at a concentration of 0.002 percent.

• Due to its reactivity lithium exists only bound within minerals such as spodumene, petalite, lepidolite along with amblygonite.

• The Lithium Triangle including Argentina Bolivia along with Chile contains roughly 50 percent of global lithium resource storage.

• Lithium emerges as the primary mineral extracted from the ground in Australia, Chile and China.

Uses of Lithium:

• The mobile phone market along with laptop devices and electric cars and renewable energy storage solutions depend on rechargeable lithium-ion batteries for power.

• Lithium-containing metal alloys including lithium-aluminium and lithium-magnesium strengthen structures while decreasing their weight in aircrafts high-speed trains along with bicycles frames.

• The combination of lithium oxide strengthens the durability properties of specific glass and ceramic materials.

• Lithium chloride together with lithium bromide functions as an industrial component for air conditioning and industrial drying operations.

• Hospital practice requires lithium carbonate to assist patients with bipolar disorder (manic depression).

• The application of lithium hydride serves as an energy storage method for hydrogen.

Lithium Reserves in India:

• The Geological Survey of India (GSI) reported in February 2023 about discovering 5.9 million tonnes of inferred lithium reserves in Reasi district, Jammu & Kashmir which marks the first major lithium discovery in the country.

• The states of Karnataka together with Chhattisgarh and Rajasthan contain minor lithium deposits.

Lithium Exploration & Production Efforts:

• Khanij Bidesh India Limited (KABIL) which is a joint venture between three public sector firms undertakes foreign acquisitions of lithium assets.

• The Indian government seeks lithium supply agreements with Argentina, Australia and Chile because these nations hold promising lithium deposits.

• The government uses Make in India and Atma Nirbhar Bharat initiatives to refine lithium and produce batteries.

Strategic Funding and Policy Push

• The Indian government committed ₹163 billion ($1.88 billion) for critical minerals sector development under an approval in January 2025.

• The Ministry of Mines has declared more than twenty minerals essential since they play vital roles in India's transition toward renewable energy and construction requirements.

• India needs to develop its lithium processing technology which remains under China's control.

Significance of Critical Mineral Exploration

Economic Implications

• Domestic lithium mining operations will reduce EV battery prices which makes electric vehicles more accessible to the market.

• The domestic extraction of lithium reduces the billions of dollars India sends to foreign nations for lithium and thus saves valuable foreign exchange reserves.

• India appeals to worldwide investors by extending its offshore mineral block bidding opportunity for worth ₹1.5 trillions.

Geopolitical Considerations

• The Indian government seeks to diminish Chinese global lithium processing authority through an expanded distribution network of production sites.

• Through mining agreements between India and African nations in Zambia and Congo and Tanzania economic relations between the two regions will become stronger.

• Experimental cooperation with Australia provides domestic and international investors with dependable access to critical minerals.

Environmental and Social Impact

• The establishment of mining operations both inside India and Africa creates new employment opportunities throughout these geographic areas.

• Building responsible mining practices remains essential because such activities will disrupt local ecosystems and force community displacement.

• Lithium mining helps India implement its green energy plans through both electric vehicle adoption and renewable energy storage systems development.

Challenges and Way Forward

• The development of efficient lithium processing technology remains pending in India due to operational challenges in J&K which encounter security complications and complex logistical dynamics.

• Sustainable mining needs environmentally safe regulations to prevent environmental harm.

• India must maintain lasting agreements with mineral resource foreign competitors as several countries display parallel interest in critical mineral extraction.

Conclusion

The Indian government actively supports critical mineral exploration efforts because it helps achieve self-reliance in vital industrial sectors. India is creating a sustainable and energy-secure future by successfully acquiring resources from Zambia, Congo, Australia and its own domestic reserves. The successful execution of this initiative depends on proper solutions for environmental issues and technological requirements as well as geopolitical conflicts.