'Should India depend on other countries?' PM Modi backs Rs 2,814 crore critical minerals scheme cleared by Cabinet

The Union Cabinet chaired by Prime Minister PM Narendra Modi has approved the Capex Support Scheme to Promote Critical Mineral Processing with a total financial outlay of Rs 2814 crore over five years news agency ANI reportedSpeaking about the strategic necessity of domestic infrastructure in a post on X PM Modi emphasised that India cannot afford to depend on foreign nations for the refined materials that power the nations futureDo you feel India should depend on other countries for processing the critical minerals that power our future I certainly dont Lithium nickel cobalt these are essential for EVs batteries electronics and defence Yet we remain heavily dependent on imports of refined materials To address this the Cabinet has approved a scheme to change this Key highlights New critical mineral processing plants capital subsidy to boost investment greater domestic value addition stronger supply chains The principle is clear India must have capabilities to build technologies of the future PM Modi wrote in his postDo you feel India should depend on other countries for processing the critical minerals that power our future I certainly donrsquot Lithium nickel cobalthellipthese are essential for EVs batteries electronics and defence Yet we remain heavily dependent on imports of refined materials To address this the Cabinet has approved a scheme to change this Key highlights New critical mineral processing plants Capital subsidy to boost investment Greater domestic value addition Stronger supply chains The principle is clearIndia must have capabilities to build technologies of the future httpstcodeencvjivtmdash Narendra Modi narendramodi November 4 2026According to an official release from the Cabinet the processing of critical minerals is concentrated in a few locations globallyThis exposes supply chains to geopolitical disruptions price volatility and potential supply restrictions posing severe threats to supply chain resilience and economic security This has implications for national security economic sovereignty and the timely achievement of decarbonisation targetsIndia plans to strengthen critical mineral value chain with capex support schemeAt present India remains considerably dependent on imports for refined intermediates and highpurity materials owing to the nascent domestic beneficiation and processing infrastructure for critical minerals such as lithium nickel and cobaltThe limited domestic processing capacity has left commercialscale projects facing challenges including high capital requirements limited availability of suitable technologies and constrained access to raw materials Building domestic capacity is therefore essential to maximise value addition achieve import substitution and establish resilient endtoend value chainsAgainst this backdrop the ldquoCapex Support Scheme to Promote Critical Mineral Processingrdquo has been formulated to provide targeted capital expenditure support for the establishment and operationalisation of domestic processing facilities The scheme aims to develop domestic processing capabilities in India to support value addition within the country reduce import dependence and develop the value chain a release saidThe scheme targets the processing of lithium and nickel ores and intermediary products into highpurity compounds Cobalt is also expected to be recovered as a byproduct of nickel production This will support critical sectors such as electric mobility battery energy storage systems BESS electronics defence and speciality steelGovt plans four lithium nickel processing plants under new capex schemeAccording to the release the proposed scheme envisages a total financial outlay of Rs 2814 crore The scheme period is from financial year 202627 to 203031 Under the scheme a capital subsidy of 30 per cent of eligible investment will be provided for setting up four critical mineral processing plants comprising two lithium processing plants with a minimum capacity of 30 kt each and two nickel processing plants with a minimum capacity of 50 kt each The maximum capital support will be capped at Rs 500 crore per lithium beneficiary and Rs 900 crore per nickel beneficiary respectivelyThe selection of beneficiaries shall be carried out through a twostage process In the first stage applications shall be assessed for technical qualification and only technically qualified applicants shall be eligible to participate in the second stage of financial bidding For each mineral two beneficiaries will be selected based on the leastcost criterion which means the lowest capital expenditure support sought by bidders under the schemeThe scheme is an important step towards advancing the objectives of Atmanirbhar Bharat by supporting the development of resilient domestic processing infrastructure and strengthening Indiarsquos capabilities across the critical mineral value chain the release addedWith inputs from ANI