Mining mogul Anil Agarwal is pushing ahead with an aggressive plan to raise oil and gas production, expand output of metals such as zinc and aluminium, and foray into semiconductor manufacturing, undeterred by concerns about debt levels at the company.

Raised in Patna, Agarwal, who dropped out of school at 15, started his business in Mumbai in 1976 as a scrap-metal dealer. Now he runs a mining and metals empire that spans Britain, India, Africa and Australia.

In an interview with PTI, he said mining can help India prosper as tapping into below-the-ground natural resources will not just cut dependence on imports but also create jobs and increase prosperity.

Vedanta, the company he founded and is chairman of, has ambitious plans to raise production across the business — from oil and gas to zinc and aluminium. “We will be producing in two years 300,000 barrels of oil (and oil equivalent gas) and in 4-5 years 500,000 barrels,” he said.

In the fiscal year that ended March 31, 2023, Vedanta produced 142,615 barrels of oil and oil equivalent gas, primarily from its Rajasthan assets.

“Demand for zinc is increasing. We are looking at South Africa and here (in India) together to cater to the demand-supply gap and to produce around 3 million tonnes at the cost of $1,000 per tonne,” he said, adding aluminium too is seeing a 20 per cent year-on-year growth.