Union Minister of Coal & Mines, G. Kishan Reddy, alongside Minister of State for Coal & Mines, Satish Chandra Dubey, will launch the 7th Tranche of Auction of Critical and Strategic Mineral Blocks on March 23, 2026.

The initiative underscores the growing strategic importance of critical minerals, which are vital to the country’s economic development and mineral security. With the global shift toward clean energy and advanced technologies, demand for minerals such as lithium, graphite, rare earth elements (REE), tungsten, vanadium, and titanium has surged. Given their limited availability and concentrated geographical distribution, securing a resilient supply chain has become a national priority.

In a landmark move to address these challenges, the Government of India amended the Mines and Minerals (Development and Regulation) Act, 1957 (MMDR Act) on August 17, 2023, notifying 24 minerals as critical and strategic. The amendment empowers the Central Government to conduct auctions for Mining Leases and Composite Licences for these resources, with all revenue generated accruing to the respective State Governments.

To date, the Ministry of Mines has successfully concluded six tranches of auctions, resulting in 46 critical and strategic mineral blocks being auctioned—a testament to robust industry participation and growing investor confidence in India’s mineral sector.

The upcoming seventh tranche will offer 19 blocks across multiple states under both Mining Lease and Composite Licence categories. The blocks feature a diverse range of minerals essential for clean energy, advanced technologies, fertilizers, and strategic industries.

The auction framework has been progressively strengthened to enhance transparency, efficiency, and speedy operationalisation of mineral blocks. Recent regulatory reforms, including the Mineral (Auction) Second Amendment Rules, 2025, have streamlined post-auction processes such as the submission of performance security, upfront payments, and issuance of Letters of Intent. Further, the Mineral (Auction) Amendment Rules, 2026 have introduced the provision of Insurance Surety Bonds as an alternative to bank guarantees, offering greater flexibility to bidders.

The auction will be conducted online through a transparent two-stage ascending forward auction process, with the successful bidder selected on the basis of the highest percentage of the value of mineral dispatched quoted.