NEW DELHI (Reuters) – Coal India Ltd, the world’s largest coal miner, has held internal talks to discuss buying metal mines abroad amid faltering revenues and rising employee costs, potentially signaling a strategy shift to cut reliance on the fossil fuel.
The state-run company plans to form two units: one to manage its local mining of iron ore, bauxite and manganese, and another to expand into copper and nickel mining overseas, two company officials involved in the planning told Reuters.
“The plans of Coal India to enter into metal mining business both in India and abroad are in a very nascent stage, and of strategic and confidential nature,” the company said.
Coal India, which has so far been unsuccessful in buying stakes in overseas coal mines, is banking on government to government deals for its overseas foray into metal mining, company officials said, adding that any proposal that follows will be subject to board approval.
The plan to diversify into mining metals such as copper and nickel with no prior experience is being seen by analysts as a long-term strategy to firm up revenues, with no immediate results in sight.
For the rest of this article: https://www.reuters.com/article/us-coal-india-mining/worlds-largest-coal-miner-looking-to-buy-metal-mines-abroad-idUSKCN1C41M4