Copper Supply Shock Hits India as Top Plant Ordered to Close

  • Tamil Nadu says shutdown of Vedanta smelter will be permanent
  • Copper imports by India are expected to increase after closure
Protest in Chennai against the killings of protesters in Tuticorin, on May 24.Photographer: Arun Sankar/AFP via Getty Images
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India faces a copper supply shock after a state government ordered billionaire Anil Agarwal’s Vedanta Ltd. to shut down a plant permanently following deadly protests in a move that will slash nationwide output and stoke demand for imports. The company’s shares fell.

The Tamil Nadu government directed the southern state’s pollution control board to seal the 400,000 metric-ton-per-year smelter in Tuticorin in the interests of the people, it said on Monday. About 13 people diedBloomberg Terminal at the site last week after police opened fire as locals protested against alleged pollution.