AUSTRALIAN expertise in mining technology and services was recently showcased to industry leaders from India and Indonesia.
The first ever Trilateral Mining Seminar organised by Austrade showcased Australian expertise in mining technology and services directly to industry leaders from India and Indonesia including the world’s largest coal producer — Coal India. It was aimed at driving best practice in mine efficiency, safety standards and environmental management, and explore avenues for collaboration, according to Austrade.
Seminar participants included Former President of Newmont Mining (Indonesia), Mr Noke Kiroyan; Chairman of Hindustan Copper, Mr SC Gupta; CEO of Rio Tinto India, Mr Nik Senapati; Managing Director of Tata Power Trading Company, Mr Amulya Charan; Chairman of Gujarat NRE Resources, Mr Arun Jagatramka; and Former Director of Indian School of Mines, Professor A K Ghose.
Austrade’s National Manger for Infrastructure and Major Projects, Jeff Turner said Australian companies were well-placed to assist India in the modernisation of its mining sector.
“The way to modernise the mining sector is to utilise the best available MTS (mining technology and services). This is the driving force behind the take up of Australian technology by the Indian mining industry.
“India is rapidly moving towards environmentally sustainable options in coal mining, and there is strong interest in all clean coal technology from Australia. Coal washeries are a major opportunity for Australia. In fact, some people in India have referred to the move to washing coal as the ‘washery boom’.
“Not only is there a growing acceptance in India that it’s environmentally unsustainable to burn coal with an ash content of around 30 to 40%, but that it’s also not economical to transport unwashed coal over large distances.
“Australian software, especially mine management systems, continues to do well in the market. Other key areas are equipment and services for underground mining. India is increasingly moving towards large, modern underground mines as surface coal and minerals are exhausted,” he said.
Key contact:
Purnima.Ganapathy@austrade.gov.au