13th BRICS Education Ministers' meeting concludes with Declaration (See 'Corp Brief') IEPFA organises Stakeholder Engagement with Nodal Officers of Companies on Portal 2.0 (See 'Corp Brief') National Handloom Day celebrates Tribal Weaves of India (See 'Corp Brief') SECL leads India in Scientific Mine Closure, Transforming abandoned Mines (See 'Corp Brief') Sowa-Rigpa must emerge as Globally Recognised Evidence-Based Healthcare System: Jadhav (See 'Corp Brief') Insurance Division, DFS secures 3rd Rank in Group A Category of Grievance Redressal (See 'Corp Brief') SARFAESI - Any tenancy created after issuance of notice u/s 13(2) without prior written consent of secured creditor, is void ab initio: HC IndiaAI Mission organised AIKosh Univ Engagement Programme at Chitkara Univ (See 'Corp Brief') IBC - RBI prudential norms stopping banks from recognising interest income on NPA accounts do not wipe out borrower's obligation to accrue & recognise interest expense in its own financial statements: NCLAT (See 'Legal Desk') Comprehensive measures taken to boost digital infrastructure & cyber security: Jitin Prasada (See 'Corp Brief') IPC showcases India's Regulatory Excellence at WHO Meeting in Nepal (See 'Corp Brief') IPR - Registration of defendant's trademark does not bar passing off action where plaintiff establishes prior goodwill, misrepresentation and likely damage: HC (See 'Legal Desk') GI & Beyond 2.0 Summit showcases India's GI-tagged Handloom and Handicraft Products (See 'Corp Brief') CCI approves combination of many entities into InterGlobe Hotels (See 'Corp Brief') A&C - In international commercial arbitration seated in India, ground of ‘patent illegality' u/s 34(2A) is expressly excluded: HC (See 'Legal Desk') House Panel deliberates on strengthening Human-Wildlife Conflict Mitigation through Technology (See 'Corp Brief') Misc - A minor admitted to benefits of partnership firm is not personally liable for debts or liabilities incurred by firm during age of minority - ergo, bank communication declaring minor as wilful defaulter is invalid: HC (See 'Legal Desk') PM-PRANAM Promotes Balanced Use of Fertilizer, Organic Farming (See 'Corp Brief') On International Clouded Leopard Day, India strengthens Conservation through Dedicated Action Plan (See 'Corp Brief') Companies Act - Solely because a private bank carries on banking operations as scheduled bank or is bound to follow regulatory guidelines issued by the RBI, it does not acquires character of a statutory body: HC (See 'Legal Desk') C-DAC and GSI sign umbrella MoU to strengthen Geoscience & Mineral Exploration (See 'Corp Brief') IPR - Test for 'efficacy' u/s 3(d) of Patents Act is not limited to 'therapeutic efficacy' for all substances: HC (See 'Legal Desk') Dipka OC: Powering India's Growth through Scale & Efficiency (See 'Corp Brief') IPR - U/s 9(1)(a) of Trade Marks Act, correct legal test is whether applied mark possesses 'distinctive character', means if it is capable of distinguishing applicant's goods from those of others - YES: HC (See 'Legal Desk') Union Minister inaugurates Centre of Excellence for Handloom Technology at IIT Delhi (See 'Corp Brief') IBC - Private bank's commercial decision on debt assignment or settlement, even if regulated by RBI norms, remains private banking transaction and does not satisfy function test for writ maintainability: HC (See 'Legal Desk') Mandaviya felicitates Commonwealth Games 2026 Weightlifting medallists with cash rewards (See 'Corp Brief') Sonepur Bazari OCP: Setting New Benchmarks in Coal Production (See 'Corp Brief') IPR - In absence of evidence showing acquired distinctiveness or secondary meaning, descriptive mark could not validly remain on Register: HC (See 'Legal Desk') KCC-MISS has positively impacted Cropping Intensity and Multi-Season Cultivation (See 'Corp Brief') Disciplinary case pendency reduced from over 4,000 to 700: MoS (See 'Corp Brief') Limitation - Single Judge rightly declined to exercise writ jurisdiction in a matter which essentially involves contractual obligations & involves disputed issues of fact: HC (See 'Legal Desk') Handloom Hackathon 2.0 concludes at IIT Delhi (See 'Corp Brief') Tete-a-tete around AI in banking sector often begins with algorithms (See CORP EINSICHT) IBC - Insolvency cannot be used as substitute for debt recovery or to settle complicated shareholder battles: NCLT (See 'Legal Desk') IBC - Unregistered lease deed cannot be relied upon to establish substantive leasehold rights or duration of tenancy: NCLT (See 'Legal Desk')

Copper Quality Control Order: A step towards Atma Nirbharta

Published: Dec 07, 2024

By TIOLCorplaws News Service

NEW DELHI, DEC 07, 2024: TO strengthen the quality control eco-system for non-ferrous metals sector (including Copper) in the country, the Ministry of Mines notified the Copper (Quality Control) Order on 31 st August, 2023, along with Quality Control Orders (QCOs) for Aluminium and Aluminium Alloys and Nickel. Initially the QCOs including Copper QCO were to come into force after three months from the date of its notification i.e. 30.11.2023.

Thereafter, basis the requests received from industry stakeholders including user sector industry and taking into account the supply situation, this order was extended vide notification dated 3 rd November, 2023 by six months (i.e.1.6.2024) and subsequently, by another six months vide notification dated 3 rd May, 2024 i.e. 1.12.2024. The Ministry has held several interactions with concerned stakeholders on regular basis through series of meeting(s) with industry bodies and user sector industries during the month of October, 2023; January, 2024; May, 2024; September, 2024; and October, 2024. Secretary (Mines) held a meeting with DG BIS on 17.1.2024 in which besides BIS & Ministry officials, industry representatives also attended. Thus, a sufficient period of 15 months, from 31 st August, 2023, onwards was allowed to the domestic and foreign suppliers of Copper cathodes to obtain the Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) certification.

In FY 2023-24, India imported about 363 Thousand Tonnes (THT) of refined copper cathode (HS Code: 740311), valued at Rs. 24,552 crore. Japan accounts for about 2/3 rd (67%) of the refined copper imports. In quantity terms, about 69% of India's refined copper imports come from Japan. Tanzania is India's second important source of refined copper, contributing about 18% of the imports; followed by Mozambique with a share of about 5%.

M/s Adani's Kutch Copper Refinery has since come into production. However, as per company officials, ramp-up to full capacity will require some more time (about Feb-March 2025). Once achieved, India will be self-sufficient in refined copper, and will not have to rely on imports. Till that time, some amount of import of refined copper will take place.

As of now, 7 applications from Japanese smelters have been received for BIS certification, of which one smelter (Sumitomo Metal Mining Co. Ltd.) has already been granted license. As per information received from BIS, two more licenses will be granted by next week.

Presently, four domestic suppliers namely, Adani's Kutch Copper Ltd, Hindalco Industries Ltd, Gujarat Victory Forgings Pvt Ltd & Vedanta Ltd and four foreign suppliers, one each from Japan and Austria, and two from Malaysia have been certified by BIS to supply copper cathode to Indian market. Thus, with 4 domestic BIS certified suppliers & 4 foreign BIS certified suppliers and another two certifications by mid of Dec, 2024, no serious supply side constraint is envisaged.

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