Ministry of Mines Launches 7th Critical Mineral Auction Tranche; GMDC, Vedanta Ltd, Hindustan Zinc Ltd, Coal India Ltd Stocks in Focus

Critical minerals play a key role in the development of India's economy and mineral security. The demand for minerals is increasing due to the clean energy and advanced technology shift. Minerals like lithium, graphite, REEs, tungsten, vanadium and more are in demand. These items have a restricted presence across limited parts of the world. This continues to pose challenges and risks to stable and resilient supply chains.

In August 2023, the Government of India (GOI) revised the Mines and Minerals (Development and Regulation) Act, 1957 in recognition of this. Twenty-four minerals are officially designated as strategic and critical. By ensuring that the money raised goes to the appropriate state governments, this action gave the Centre the authority to directly auction mining leases and composite licenses for these resources.

So far, the Ministry of Mines has completed 6 rounds of auctions, awarding 46 blocks.  Building on this, the seventh tranche offers 19 additional mineral blocks. This brings the total number of blocks put up for auction to over 60. These blocks are present in the states of Arunachal Pradesh, Bihar, Chhattisgarh, Gujarat, Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh, Odisha, Rajasthan, Telangana and Uttarakhand. The blocks cover a wide range of minerals that are essential for sectors such as clean energy, advanced technologies, fertilisers and strategic industries.

The auction is going to be held online through a transparent two-stage ascending forward auction process. The successful bidder will be selected based on the highest percentage of the value of minerals dispatched quoted.

The winners of the auction have not been announced yet, but companies active in prior auctions and companies present in the mining of critical minerals are expected to benefit from this.

Stocks in Focus

Hindustan Zinc:

Hindustan Zinc has also started exploring critical minerals like cobalt, nickel, lithium, and rare earth elements through a new arm.

As of March 24, 2026, 10:16 IST, the share price is trading at ₹487.30, which is down by 0.07%. It touched a high of ₹499.00 earlier in the session. The share price has come down to its low of ₹487.10 so far.

Vedanta:

Vedanta is a diversified metals and mining company involved in aluminium, zinc, and oil production. The company is also exploring rare earth elements, nickel, and cobalt across different states.

As of March 24, 2026, 10:16 IST, the share is trading at ₹649.50, up by 0.58%. It reached a high of ₹664.00 during the session and the share has eased towards its low of ₹648.80 so far.

GMDC:

GMDC is a mining company focused on lignite and other minerals in Gujarat. It is developing India’s first rare earth processing hub for EV magnet materials like neodymium and dysprosium.

As of March 24, 2026, the share price is trading at ₹570.80, which is up 0.31%. It recorded a high of ₹587.45 during the session. Additionally, the share has moved near its low of ₹566.55.

Coal India:

Coal India is the coal producer and a key player in India’s energy sector. It is expanding into minerals like graphite, vanadium, and lithium, along with solar initiatives.

Today, the share is trading at ₹442.80, down by 2.73%. It touched a high of ₹463.00 earlier in the session. The share fell to a low of ₹441.25 during the trading session.