The Indian Bureau of Mines (IBM) will register and regulate domestic mineral exchanges, the union mines ministry said in a gazette notification Thursday. Enabling provisions to operate a domestic minerals exchange were approved through amendments to the Mines and Minerals (Development and Regulation) Act, moved in August this year.
Union Mines Minister G Kishan Reddy had said India’s mineral trading exchange will operate like the London Metal Exchange (LME). The proposed mineral exchange is expected to facilitate better price discovery for industries, traders and other stakeholders.
The August amendments empowered the Centre to promote development of the market, including trading of minerals, its concentrate or its processed forms (including metals) through a mineral exchange.
“Setting up of mineral exchanges will help miners and end-users of minerals in determining fair and transparent market prices based on supply and demand dynamics,” Reddy had said.
The centre is empowered register or revoke licenses of a mineral exchange. IBM is expected to enforce regulation such as prevention of cartelisation, insider trading, circular trading, market manipulation and any other matter which is detrimental to the participants of the mineral exchanges.
