Sesa Goa aims to produce 10 mn tonnes of iron ore in phase-I from Liberia's project

NEW DELHI: Vedanta Group company Sesa Goa is aiming to produce 10 million tonnes of iron ore during the initial phase of production from Liberia's Western Clusters project on the grounds of higher-than-estimated reserves.

The company is on high spirits to make the first shipments by the end of 2013-14 financial year. The project has been divided into two phases and in the first phase, production target is of 10 million tonnes (MT).

Last year, the Goa-based iron ore miner had acquired 51 per cent stake in project in Liberia (in West Africa) for nearly USD 90 million (Rs 411 crore). This was the first overseas acquisition of the company.

The reserves at the Liberian project are expected to be three times higher than original estimates of 1 billion tonnes and in the second phase the company would increase the production from the project by up to 30 MT.

During April-May this year, the iron ore miner had started the exploration of the asset and is now planning to pump in Rs 400-450 crore on the project this year.