UK, India to establish mining technology satellite campus at IIT-ISM Dhanbad

Under the UK-India Technology Security Initiative (TSI), a new satellite campus will be established at the Indian Institute of Technology - Indian School of Mines (IIT ISM) in Dhanbad. The Technology Innovation in Exploration and Mining Foundation (TEXMiN) campus will be launched by the department of science and technology, Government of India.

This announcement comes after Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and British Prime Minister Keir Starmer pledged an investment of 1.8 million pounds sterling into the world’s first Critical Minerals Supply Chain Observatory, managed jointly by the UK and India.

The Industrial Resilience Research Group at the University of Cambridge leads the observatory for UK-India research collaboration. IIT Bombay, along with other Indian institutions, is a part of the organisation. The two countries come together to assess the supply chains of critical minerals, risks, investment, and recycling opportunities.

Also read Four IITs among 7 institutes recognised as centres of excellence under National Critical Mineral Mission

UK-India mineral security collaboration

The UK-India partnership focuses on minerals such as lithium, copper, nickel and cobalt, which are “essential” for modern applications, such as electric vehicles, renewable energy, as well as semiconductors. TEXMiN’s satellite campus at IIT ISM Dhanbad aims to build an “extensive digital infrastructure” to enable traceability, sustainable sourcing, and transparency.

The International Centre of Excellence in Mining (iCEM) by the Gujarat Mineral Development Corporation Limited (GMDC Limited) aims to set up a variant of the observatory at Ahmedabad. The variant will focus on “end-to-end Rare Earth Element supply chain”, with skill development in mid-stream operations.

Speaking about the UK-India Technology Security Initiative, John Aston, pro-vice chancellor, Cambridge University, said: “Critical minerals have a key role in all our lives, in India and the UK and beyond, especially in energy transition and new technologies. So we welcome the opportunity to work more closely with our Indian colleagues in analysing the links (and breaks) in the supply chains of these essential elements.”