Reuters reported that India's largest aluminium maker, Vedanta Aluminium Limited will temporarily shut its alumina refinery in Odisha due to bauxite shortages.

Mr Mukesh Kumar president of Vedanta said that "Despite all our efforts we could not arrange bauxite we are closing down the unit from December 5th 2012. The shutdown of the refinery is unlikely immediately to affect VAL's aluminium output."

Mr Kumar said that the 1 million tonnes a year plant at Lanjigarh in Kalahandi district of Odisha will restart only after securing supplies of bauxite the raw material to produce alumina, from which aluminium is made.

He said that VAL is seeking a long term supply arrangement. The refinery which requires 10,000 tonnes of bauxite a day to operate at full capacity has faced bauxite shortages since it was commissioned in August 2007.