Koraput: National Aluminium Company Ltd (Nalco) situated at Damanjodi in the district on Monday achieved a milestone towards operationalising its captive Pottangi bauxite mines in Koraput district with signing of govt land lease deed for overland conveyor corridor and water intake facility.Officials said the signing marked completion of a key phase of land acquisition process for the project. Nalco executive director (mines & refinery) Amarendra Kumar Mishra and IDCO chief general manager (Land) Harischandra Rout signed the lease deed in presence of Nalco director (P&T) Jagdish Arora. Pottangi tehsildar Debendra Bahadur Singh Dharua and Semiliguda tehsildar Debabrata Karati were also present on the occasion.The execution of the govt land lease deed is an important step towards completing land-related formalities for Pottangi bauxite mines project. The administration has extended necessary cooperation for the process, keeping in view importance of the project, said Dharua.The Pottangi mines are being developed as Nalco’s captive source of bauxite and are expected to strengthen the company’s raw material supply for its alumina refinery operations. The overland conveyor corridor and water intake facility are among key infrastructure components required for mines operationalisation.“Nalco has obtained mining lease for 111 million tonnes of bauxite from Pottangi mines and the latest development is expected to pave way for further work towards commissioning captive mines, which are considered important for ensuring a sustained supply of bauxite to its alumina refinery,” said a senior Nalco official.
