Hindustan Zinc has secured a 314.21-hectare rare-earth and yttrium mining block in Karnataka, potentially strengthening India’s domestic supply of critical minerals for electronics, EVs, and defence systems.
Hindustan Zinc Ltd (HZL), a Vedanta Group company, has secured a mining lease for a Rare Earth Element (REE) and Yttrium block in Karnataka, potentially strengthening domestic access to minerals critical to strategic electronics and technology industries.
The Gundlupet REE and Yttrium block, located in Chamrajnagar District, Karnataka, covers 314.21 hectares. The Government of Karnataka has issued a Letter of Intent (LoI) in favour of Hindustan Zinc pursuant to Rule 10(2) of the Mineral Auction Rules, 2015.
Rare earth elements are important inputs for advanced electronics and high-technology manufacturing, with applications spanning smartphones, electric vehicles, wind turbines, defence systems and other advanced electronic systems.
The development could help India move further upstream in the electronics value chain by establishing a domestic source of critical mineral inputs. For electronics manufacturers, greater domestic availability of REEs could eventually help address supply-chain concentration and import dependence for strategically important materials.
The mining lease therefore has significance beyond the mining sector, with potential implications for India’s electronics supply-chain resilience and strategic-material security across electronics, EVs, defence, and renewable-energy equipment.
