Canadian firm set for drilling in Uttarakhand
By IANSWednesday, April 21, 2010
VANCOUVER - Canada’s Pebble Creek mining company said here Tuesday that it is all set to commence drilling operations at its Askot project in India’s Uttarakhand state.
Situated in Pithoragarh district of the state, the Askot project likely contains deposits of gold, silver, copper, zinc and lead.
The Vancouver-based company said it will undertake drilling operations up to depth of 7,000 metres to ascertain the quantity of the minerals under the Askot belt.
The company said drilling would start after its equipment from its base in Rajasthan shifted to Uttarakhand this week.
Pebble Creek vice president William A. Sheppard will be in India to oversee drilling operations at the Uttarakhand site.
The Canadian company, which has been operating in India for the past 15 years, said the Askot project is “the most advanced of the non-ferrous exploration and development projects in India operated by foreign junior exploration companies”.
Pebble Creek is one the 10 major mining companies from Canada that have been active in India for many years.
With India planning to announce a new mining policy soon to double the share of the mining sector to the country’s GDP to four percent, major Canadian drilling and equipment companies are making a beeline for India.
Homeland Uranium, Cogemacoustic, Safety Plus Ltd., Wardrop, Multiutethanes, Lang Michener, and Rax Enterprises are among the major companies seeking tie-ups with Indian counterparts.
India drew a huge response at the world’s biggest mining conference in Toronto last month, with Canada’s Ontario province announcing a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with New Delhi for exploiting India’s mineral wealth.
Apart from seven state governments and the Federation of Indian Mineral Industries, major Indian mining companies, including Hindustan Copper, Rio Tinto (India), National Mineral Development Corporation and Anglo American, participated in the global gathering attended by 300 major mining companies of the world.
–Indo-Asian News Services
