JSW Steel has secured relief from a ₹696.32 crore demand linked to mineral dispatch shortfalls at its Jajang Iron Ore Block in Odisha, while the Orissa High Court has also set aside a separate ₹1,472.69 crore demand for fresh consideration by mining authorities.
The company said on Sunday that the court disposed of its writ petition challenging the demand raised by authorities in Joda. The matter involving the ₹696.32 crore demand was disposed of on October 16, 2026, in line with an earlier judgment delivered by the court on April 20, 2026.
The first demand was raised through a letter dated September 6, 2021, after authorities assessed a shortfall in mineral dispatches from JSW Steel’s Jajang iron ore block. The assessment related to the first year of the company’s Mine Development and Production Agreement, which covered the period from June 27, 2020, to June 26, 2021.
JSW Steel had filed a separate petition before the High Court seeking to quash the demand issued by the Joda mining authorities. The court’s order removes the ₹696.32 crore demand in the matter described by the company, according to the report published by Business Standard.
The court also granted relief in relation to a second demand notice issued on August 21, 2025, by the Deputy Director of Mines, Joda. That notice sought ₹1,472.69 crore from JSW Steel for an assessed shortfall in mineral dispatches during the fifth year of the Mine Development and Production Agreement, from June 27, 2024, to June 26, 2025.
Rather than finally deciding the second demand, the court set aside the notice and sent the matter back to the concerned authorities for reconsideration. It directed the authorities to review the case in light of the legal position explained in the court’s April 20 judgment.
The demands relate to the administration of mineral dispatch obligations at an iron ore block operated under a Mine Development and Production Agreement. Such assessments form part of the regulatory framework governing the extraction and movement of minerals that feed the steel sector, a critical source of material for construction and infrastructure projects.
According to the report, the authorities raised the demand under Rule 12-A of the Minerals (Other than Atomic and Hydrocarbons Energy Minerals) Concession Rules, 2016. The court’s order therefore leaves the second matter open for administrative reconsideration rather than cancelling the underlying assessment permanently.
JSW Steel’s petitions were filed against orders issued by the Joda mining authorities. The company’s regulatory filing, as reported by Business Standard, disclosed both court outcomes and the periods to which the two mineral dispatch assessments relate. The next formal step in the second matter is the reconsideration of the demand by the concerned mining authorities in accordance with the High Court’s directions.
