India is seeking to shore up its access to critical minerals such as lithium, a government official said, as the world’s most populous country rushes to catch up with rivals including China in the race to build next-generation energy supply chains.
New Delhi is pushing state-owned mining groups to pursue mineral reserves in South America and Africa as well as inviting bids to develop domestic mining blocks as it seeks to expand industries such as electric vehicles and renewables, where Beijing has a commanding lead.
“The importance and requirement and need for critical minerals is exponentially increasing because of the technology, growth and climate goals we have set for ourselves,” VL Kantha Rao, a secretary in India’s ministry of mines, told the Financial Times.