Minerals and Energy Resources: OAS Notes on Distribution, India and Odisha

These minerals and energy resources notes for OPSC OAS cover the definition and classification of minerals and their uneven global distribution, India's mineral production base and the 2023 list of 30 critical minerals, conventional energy resources including coal, petroleum, natural gas and nuclear fuels, renewable and non-conventional sources, and the mineral and energy profile of Odisha, which is India's leading mineral-producing state.

Minerals: Definition, Classification and Key Characteristics

A mineral is a natural substance of organic or inorganic origin with a definite chemical composition and definite physical properties. Three characteristics make minerals strategically important: they are unevenly distributed across the Earth's crust, they are exhaustible because they form over millions of years, and their formation is a geological process that cannot be replicated on a human timescale.

Iron ore grades: Magnetite is the highest grade, with 60–70% iron content, magnetic properties and black colour (hence called black ore). Haematite is slightly lower in iron but is the most widely mined ore globally. Limonite and siderite are lower-grade ores.

Copper ores include chalcopyrite, chalcocite, malachite and cuprite. Copper and tin alloy to form bronze; copper and zinc form brass. Bauxite is the ore of aluminium, refined through the Bayer process and then smelted by the Hall-Héroult electrolytic process.

World Distribution of Major Minerals

Global mineral production is highly concentrated in a small number of countries, which creates supply-chain vulnerabilities for importing nations such as India and shapes international mineral diplomacy.

UPPSC 2015 asked the largest copper producer — Chile. UPPSC 2017 asked what Chuquicamata is famous for — copper. BPSC 2019 asked the largest uranium producer — Kazakhstan. IAS 2009 asked the largest uranium reserves — Australia.

India's Mineral Base and Critical Minerals

Mineral production trends (FY25)

India's iron ore production reached a record 289 million tonnes (MMT) in FY 2024–25, a 4.6% increase from 277 MMT in FY 2023–24. Manganese ore production was 3,802 thousand tonnes and bauxite 24,705 thousand tonnes in FY25. Among non-ferrous metals, aluminium production was 4,199 thousand tonnes, copper 573 thousand tonnes, lead 225 thousand tonnes and zinc 827 thousand tonnes in FY25.

India is near self-sufficient in bauxite, chromite, iron ore and limestone, but remains import-dependent for copper, cobalt, lithium, nickel and rare earth elements.

Ministry of Mines data for FY25 shows record iron ore output of 289 MMT, a 4.6% growth over FY24.

The 2023 list of 30 critical minerals

The Ministry of Mines constituted a committee on 1 November 2022 to identify critical and strategic minerals. The committee submitted its report on 12 May 2023 and recommended 30 minerals as critical for India after a three-stage assessment. Out of these, 24 minerals were included in Part D of Schedule I of the MMDR Act, 1957, through the MMDR Amendment Act, 2023.

The 30 minerals are: antimony, beryllium, bismuth, cobalt, copper, gallium, germanium, graphite, hafnium, indium, lithium, molybdenum, niobium, nickel, platinum group elements (PGE), phosphorous, potash, rare earth elements (REE), rhenium, silicon, strontium, tantalum, tellurium, tin, titanium, tungsten, vanadium, zirconium, selenium and cadmium.

KABIL (Khanij Bidesh India Ltd), a joint venture of NALCO, Hindustan Copper Ltd and Mineral Exploration and Consultancy Ltd, was incorporated to acquire overseas mineral assets of a critical and strategic nature, particularly lithium and cobalt. KABIL has engagements with Argentina and Australia. The government also launched the first tranche of auction of critical mineral blocks on 29 November 2023 for 20 blocks, including nickel-copper and graphite-manganese blocks in Odisha.

India has also launched deep-sea mineral exploration in the Indian Ocean using the Samudrayaan submersible, with estimates of 2.8 million tonnes of cobalt and 160 million tonnes of nickel in the exploration zone.

Conventional Energy Resources

Coal

Coal is an organic sedimentary rock formed from accumulated plant remains. The great world deposits were laid down in the Carboniferous period (about 360–300 million years ago). In ascending order of carbon content the ranks are peat, lignite, bituminous and anthracite. Anthracite has the highest carbon content (about 86–98%) and the lowest impurities; bituminous coal (70–90% carbon) is the most widely used for coking and power generation; lignite (25–35% carbon) is brown and low-grade; peat is the lowest grade with high moisture.

China is the world's largest coal producer, followed by India and the USA. India's coal is largely Gondwana coal of Carboniferous-Permian age.

Petroleum and natural gas

Petroleum is a mixture of hydrocarbons of different densities; its grade depends on the relative proportion of those hydrocarbons. Venezuela holds the largest proven crude oil reserves, followed by Saudi Arabia and Canada. West Asia accounts for more than half of world reserves. Brent crude is a North Sea benchmark, low in sulphur but not sulphur-free. Ras Tanura in Saudi Arabia is a giant refinery and export terminal; Baku on the Caspian Sea is a historic petroleum centre.

Nuclear fuels

Uranium: Kazakhstan leads production; Australia holds the largest reserves. Pitchblende is the highest-grade uranium mineral (50–80% uranium). Canada's Cigar Lake is one of the world's highest-grade uranium mines, and the Colorado Plateau is the classic US uranium district. Thorium: India has the largest reserves and is the leading producer, with thorium recovered from monazite in beach sands. India's three-stage nuclear programme is designed to eventually use thorium in the third stage.

Renewable and Non-Conventional Energy

India's renewable energy sector has expanded rapidly. By 31 March 2025, total installed renewable capacity reached 220.10 GW, up from 198.75 GW in the previous year, with a record annual addition of 29.52 GW. Solar capacity was 105.65 GW and wind capacity 50.04 GW at the end of FY25.

By December 2025, solar capacity had risen further to 135.81 GW and wind to 54.51 GW, with non-fossil fuel capacity reaching 266.78 GW. India added a record 49.12 GW of non-fossil capacity in 2025 alone. Bioenergy capacity was 11.61 GW and small hydro 5.16 GW.

India's target is 500 GW of non-fossil fuel capacity by 2030, as part of the Panchamrit commitments announced at COP26. The National Green Hydrogen Mission targets 5 million tonnes of green hydrogen annually by 2030.

OPSC and UPSC increasingly ask about critical minerals, solar and wind capacity, and India's net-zero target of 2070. The 500 GW non-fossil target and the Green Hydrogen Mission are standard mains references.

Odisha Angle: Mineral Wealth and Green Energy Transition

Odisha is India's leading mineral-producing state, contributing approximately 40–45% of the country's total mineral production value. In September 2025, Odisha alone accounted for 32.9% of the total value of mineral production among major states, at about ₹4,160 crore. The state's mining sector contributed approximately ₹64,875 crore to Odisha's revenue in FY 2024–25 and accounts for nearly 80% of the state's non-tax revenue.

Odisha's iron ore output reached 155 million tonnes in FY2025, about 53% of national output. The state holds 28% of India's iron ore reserves, 24% of coal reserves, 59% of bauxite reserves and 98% of chromite reserves. Direct employment in mining is 3–4 lakh people, with indirect employment of 10–15 lakh in transport, logistics and processing.

On the energy side, Odisha had about 3,122 MW of renewable capacity installed as of 31 December 2025. The state aims for 11 GW of renewable capacity by 2030, comprising about 7.5 GW solar, 2 GW wind, 1.2 GW pumped storage and 0.26 GW small hydro. The Odisha Renewable Energy Policy targets about 10.96 GW by 2030. Wind corridors have been identified in Koraput, Ganjam and Balasore, and floating solar potential is assessed at about 5,000 MW. The state has approved 16 clean energy projects worth nearly ₹2 lakh crore and attracted renewable investment proposals of ₹67,000 crore at its investors' meet in February 2026, representing about 6.7 GW of capacity.

For mains answers, note the paradox: Odisha is rich in minerals and has abundant solar and wind potential, yet its per-capita energy consumption remains below the national average. The state is positioning itself as a green hydrogen and green ammonia hub, leveraging its coastline and industrial base.

Practice Questions