Nagpur: The Lloyds Group, which mines iron ore at Gadchiroli, plans to begin commercial extraction at the Jonnagiri gold mines in Andhra Pradesh’s Kurnool district from April in the next financial year. Production is expected to hit a capacity of 600 kg per year from 2026-27. This is dubbed the country’s first large private sector gold mine to start operations in independent India.India imports as much as 700 tonnes of gold in a year. Once operational, the mining is expected to add to domestic sources of the yellow metal in the country. The company recently completed pre-mining operations.
The Gadchiroli mines come under Lloyds Metals and Energy Limited (LMEL), which also has B Prabhakaran-led Thriveni Group’s stake in it.Another group company, Lloyds Enterprises Limited (LEL), along with Thriveni Group, has stakes in Geomysore Services India Limited, the entity conducting the gold mining operations.As per sources, the mine is designed to have a peak capacity of producing 1,000 kg of finished gold annually. The company hopes to achieve global competitiveness with a projected production cost of $1,021 per ounce of gold, sources said.LEL secured the Jonnagiri asset with an investment of Rs 140 crore, holding over 31% stake in Geomysore. The mining trials produced 60 kg of gold, which proves the metallurgical viability of the mine.
