From Our Special Correspondent
Daijiworld Media Network
Bangalore, Jan 8: With the prices of yellow metal climbing to dizzying heights and skyrocketing more often, the Karnataka government owned Hutti Gold Mines Co Ltd (HGMCL) has set for itself an ambitious target of producing 2,578 kg of Gold during 2009-10.
The HGMCL, the only government-owned gold extraction company in the country, aims to produce an average of 4.11 gram of the yellow metal per tonne of ore.
The state government undertaking had produced 2420.33 kg gold in 2008-09.
The company would be investing Rs 352.11 crore in the next five yeas on various expansion plans.
According to state excise minister M P Renukacharya, said the company was planning to enter joint ventures with National Mineral Development Corporation, Indo-Australian Company, Australian firm Cluff, and Deccan Mines to commence mining in Davangere, Tumkur, Gulbarga, Chitrdurga Shimoga and Dharwad districts where gold minerals are found.
Renukacharya, who is also the chairman of HGMCL, said the company, which is producing 7 to 8 kg of gold daily, has set a target to earn net profit of Rs. 98.21 crore in the current fiscal year against Rs 93.05 crore in 2008-09.
The company’s total turnover in 2009-10 is expected to reach Rs 319.78 crore against Rs 316.02 crore in the previous year.
The minister said the company has been extracting 4.11 gram of gold per tonne of ore against with an average recovery of 4.24 grams a tonne of ore in 2008-09.
The company, which has 3933 employees, would be investing Rs 352.11 crore in the next five years at its plant at Hutti in Raichur district. It has decided to invest Rs. 68.22 crore on new snag ball mill which is scheduled to complete January-end.
The existing capacity of the ore milling unit is expected to be expanded to 2,000 tonnes per day when the ongoing work in the new milling plant (Snag Ball Mill) would be completed.
As of now, about 90 per cent of the building work on the plant and the assembling of the milling plant have been completed.
Apart from the reopening of the defunct Gray Shaft at the south-end of the mining area at a cost of Rs 16.32 crore, Renukacharya said the company proposed to computerise the existing mechanical system for controlling the whole operation of mining and milling units at an estimated cost of Rs 2.77 crore.
The HGMCL has set a target of extracting gold ore from a depth of 28,000 feet by the end of 2012.
It also proposed to take up underground mining activity at the Ooti and Hira-Buddinni areas once the open cast mining comes to an end.
Officials said Rs 204 crore would be invested on setting up of a new shaft at Hutti and the tender process has been commenced. A sum of Rs 14.85 crore would be spent on Ooti Gold Unit (open pit mine) development and Rs. 25 crore on ore milling unit.
The company has set apart Rs 12.09 crore to take up gold mining in Chitradurga, Davangere and Shimoga districts, where the preliminary survey work has been completed.
It has also launched a programme to expand the wind power plant at Chitradurga at an estimated cost of Rs 8.86 crore. Of the 18 MW planned, a plant with a capacity of 9.3 MW has been functioning, he added.