India: The cabinet has cleared an amendment in a mining law to permit the transfer of captive mines granted on discretion. Major deals between cement companies including UltraTech, Reliance Cements and Lafarge have been affected because the Mines and Minerals (Development and Regulation) (MMDR) Amendment Act, 2015 restricts the transfer of mining leases to auctioned mines only. The amendment will now need approval by the Indian parliament to become law.
In January 2016, the government proposed the amendment to "spur merger and acquisitions in the mining sector and help in checking the stressed and non-performing assets of banks by allowing them to liquidate assets where a firm or its captive mining lease is mortgaged.”
