Delhi High Court halts coal ministry move to encash ₹29 crore from Vedanta’s bank guarantee

Vedanta objected to the July 21 decision of the Coal Ministry of Coal, which manages the allowance. La263.17 Crore Guarantee. In the petition, examined by a copy MintThe company referred to regulatory delays and unpredictable ecological issues and requested an extension of the project milestones and extension.

Vedanta won the coal mine at the 2020 auction. The mine is critical to strengthen the company’s aluminum operations.

Plea, “the petition holder, candidate authority, the Ministry of Coal dated 21.07.2025 dated the application of the application of the appropriate order to stop the application of any amount that may be taken under this is looking for appropriate orders.” He said.

In response to a company spokesman Mint’s queries, “Vedanta sought legal solutions. The problem is the lower judgment and we will not be able to comment on it.” He said.

The queries sent to the Ministry of Coal E -Post remained unanswered during the press time.

Vedanta claimed that the order was “illegal, arbitrary, unjust and unsustainable” and claimed that delays were caused by administrative and regulatory factors rather than neglect. He asked the court to cancel the order, stop its implementation, return it in a false amount and allow additional time to allow additional time in accordance with the coal mine development and production agreement (CMDPA).

The petition states that the second Covid-19 wave, boundary mapping problems and delays, including delays in securing forest and environmental gaps, indicates a variety of reasons for the delay.

“Petition invested LaHe made significant progress towards the development of 350 Crore and mining. However, due to administrative inconsistencies and unpredictable ecological developments – including the presence of elephant corridors and areas currently classified as forests – the project timeline has become impossible to meet. “

The Ministry of Coal said that the case was filed because Vedanta could not obtain the necessary forest and environmental permits on time in his reaction to the Supreme Court. The delay was discussed as a violation of the timeline, especially since it committed to completing the Vedanta project by June 3, 2025.

Radhikapore (Western) coal block in the Angul region, which is about 190 km away from the Jharsuguda aluminum facility of Vedanta, is a unified opencast and underground mine with a peak production capacity of 6 million tons of peaks per year. It has 312 million tons of coal reserves, which are spread over 1,048 hectares, removable 151 million tons.

The project has a long and complex history. Initially in 2009, Runga Mines Ltd, OCL India Ltd and Ocean Ispat Pvt. LTD, block, the high court’s decision to distribute the 2014 coal block was among those who were canceled.

Vedanta re -negotiated in December 2020, signed CMDPA in January 2021, and in March 2021, he ordered to be entitled and officially conveyed all previous approvals and rights.

However, delays in forest and environmental gaps broke the milestone program. The Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change played a key role. In November 2021, the Forest Advisory Committee postponed Stage-i Forest Cleaning. Although permitted in January 2022, field inspections later revealed the growth of 36 acres of tree and launched the land re -classification and changes in the mining plan.

The region was also defined as a elephant habitat and a high human-philosopher conflict zone that requires an additional examination. Furthermore, during the implementation of 2024 of model behavioral rules for general elections, more delays have occurred than a freezing process, problems related to afforestation land, and a freezing process.

Following these setbacks, the Ministry of Coal issued a second demonstration notification to Vedanta in June 2024. After examining the issue, it exceeded July 21, 2025. La29.23 CRORE-SEXINS, a performance guarantee to prevent Vedanta’s final delivery date, remains the legal difficulty of the company.

Vedanta Ltd, led by billionaire Anil Agarwal, is a global natural source group with oil and gas, zinc, lead, silver, copper, iron ore, steel, aluminum and power operations throughout India, South Africa and Namibia.

Vedanta currently runs five coal blocks – Jamkhani, Kuraloi (a) North, Radhikapore, Ghogharpalli and Barra (under discovery) – with a total capacity of 40 mtpa. These mines are very important to strengthen the aluminum business, which constitutes more than half of India’s total aluminum production in FY24. Vedanta gradually increases the green aluminum share (currently with a target of 13%, 30% by 2030), coal is necessary for operational stability and cost efficiency.

On Thursday, 5,000 Crore for April -Jaziran Neighborhood “> Vedanta made a profit La5,000 Crore increases 13% for the previous year for the April -June quarter. Income increased by 6% La37,434 Crore directed with strong performance in aluminum, zinc and power.