‘Gold and copper prices have hit record highs,’ says Vedanta chairman Anil Agarwal, calling for reduced dependence on imports

Commenting on the country’s dependence on imports of gold and copper, Vedanta Chairman Anil Agarwal on Tuesday said India has large reserves of copper and gold but is highly dependent on imports of both. He called for increased private sector participation to unlock the potential of these key sectors.

In a post on X on Tuesday, Agarwal wrote:Aaj ke samay mein sona aur tamba, inka mahatva bahut zyaada ho gaya hai (In modern times, the importance of gold and copper has become significant.) In times of global uncertainty, the price of gold is rising as people buy more of the precious metal. Copper demand is driven by energy transformation technologies. Both gold and copper prices are at or near record highs.”

As global markets face uncertainty, the demand for gold as a safe asset increases, causing its price to increase. At the same time, the shift towards renewable energy technologies has increased the demand for copper, which is essential for various applications in renewable energy infrastructure.

Agarwal said that despite having significant resources, India remains highly dependent on imports of both metals.

“India has good copper and gold resources. However, in both cases we are highly dependent on imports. India consumes about 900 tonnes of gold per year but produces only 1 tonne domestically. The value of our annual gold imports is USD 45 billion or Rs 3.4 lakh crore. In terms of copper, we import 95 per cent of our requirement worth over USD 3 billion annually or Rs 24,000 crore,” Agarwal noted.

Agarwal pointed to stagnation in the production levels of public sector enterprises in the gold and copper sectors.

“What both gold and copper have in common is that each of them is home to public sector companies. As for gold, these are the Hatti Gold Mines owned by the Government of Karnataka and the Bharat Gold Mines owned by the Government of India. In the case of copper, it is Hindustan Copper Limited. Production remains more or less stagnant,” he noted.

He said that some may say there are no reserves or resources left, but I believe that with additional investment and the latest technology, both of these assets have great potential.

Recognizing the risks and other spending priorities of the government, Agarwal advocates private sector participation as the most viable solution. “Of course, this is a risky investment because we cannot be sure of the outcome. The government has other spending priorities. In these circumstances, the best option is to invite the private sector to participate. If the Government of India and Karnataka give up their shares, private companies will be able to take over,” he assured.

Agarwal predicts significant economic benefits from such a policy change. “If successful, the government will receive huge revenues from taxes and royalties. There should be no layoffs. In fact, huge jobs will be created as a result of import substitution, both industrial expansion and the development of thousands of downstream industries. This is the need of the hour,” he wrote on Twitter.

“A positive result will be extremely beneficial for Bharat,” Agarwal concluded.