The Officers’ Association of Travancore Titanium Products Ltd. (TTP) has asked the government to grant permission for the mining of rare earth to meet the ilmenite requirement of the TTP here.
The association said in a resolution here on Friday that the State government had granted permission for rare earth mining to Kerala Minerals and Metals Ltd. (KMML) which started functioning in 1982. KMML was mining ilmenite for Rs.4,500 a tonne from its captive sources and TTP was procuring it for Rs.15,000 per tonne.
Continuous profit
TTP had the rare distinction of recording profit continuously for five decades, the association said
The company used to get enough raw material till 2009 from the Chavara and Manavalakurichi units of Indian Rare Earths (IRE) to meet its monthly demand of 3,000 tonnes, it said.
Procurement from private companies started when the supply became erratic, the association said.
The ilmenite from the coastal areas of the State had a rich yield of 58 to 60 per cent but that supplied by private companies had only 48 to 50 per cent yield.
This had affected productivity and the company was facing a crisis, the resolution added, calling upon the State government to expedite steps to grant mining permission.
