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TRENDS IN MINING
-INDIAN CEMENT INDUSTRY
Mining is the process or business of extracting minerals from the
ground. Success depends upon the occurrence of the mineral or ore body,
proper study and interpretation of
the studies made, selection of latest technology, development of
infrastructure, personnel and initiating a continuously evolving
environment. Over the years, the market dynamics of the Mining Industry
have silently evolved from a sellers market to a buyers market, a
process that has required companies to make major changes in their
mindset in order to adapt and thrive in the new scenario.
Indian Cement- Limestone scenario
The Indian
Cement Industry exemplifies
this to a nicety. The Cement
Industry the world
over is tightly correlated to the GDP (the
factor in India is estimated to be about 0.88). Though the roots of the
cement industry in India goes back to 80 years, the beginning of
Industrialization in India provided the right opportunity for the cement
industry to make its presence felt. Absence of serious competition, the
presence of railway sidings and abundance of limestone seemed to be the
only criteria for setting up cement plants. Though limestone occur under
all ages in India, crystalline limestone of Archaean age
were mostly targeted and plants set up.
And
then, the inevitable happened. The now old cement plants based on
Archaean limestone not only found their technology obsolete but also
found their limestone resources fast depleting. The companies were
forced to find alternate resources, which by then had become scarce or
find new ways to increase recovery from their existing deposits. To
their dismay, they discovered that the markets - so lenient earlier were
unwilling to bear costs accruing due to the companies' outdated
procedures and processes, demanded higher standards of quality. After
decontrol of cement prices, new cement plants sprang up on sedimentary
limestone deposits other than
Archaean. which are of simpler nature Since the entire run- of- mine
could be consumed, the cost of extraction for these plants was
appreciably lower whereas the older set-ups had to manage with
progressively lower recovery ratios. Companies are now forced to work
deposits once considered unviable and/or unworkable with selective
mining. Earlier threshold values are no longer applicable for the older
plants and only technology seems to offer the panacea for survival.
Emerging trends
High
degree of mechanization and capacity to handle large volumes has lowered
the run-of- mine costs. Detailed geological explorations and
technological advances made in geostatistics and
interpretations, now make it possible for a clearer understanding of
structures and working of limestone, balancing the economics, deploying
large earthmoving equipment , handle large volumes of overburden and
exploit residual threshold deposits.
This
has opened vistas for mining engineers, manufacturers of equipment and
consultants and a definite need for technical and operational excellence
for survival. Life has also been given to small pockets of deposits that
are now worked for outsourcing.
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