India DGFT Notification 12/2026-27: Baryte Grade A & B Export Reclassified to Restricted

Mechanism

DGFT exercised delegated authority under sections 3 and 5 of the FTDR Act 1992 to insert grade-specific conditions into the ITC(HS) Schedule 2 (Export Policy). The amendment operates immediately on notification date: exporters of Grade A or B baryte must now apply for a DGFT authorisation under the standard Restricted-category licensing procedure before shipment. File reference: EC NC-ECNC/2/2026-Export cell (Non-SCOMET)/e-45302.

Grade classification

The grade cut-offs align with industry usage: Grade A/B baryte is the oil-well-drilling-grade material consumed by oilfield services companies in weighted drilling muds; CDW is lower-purity material used in paints, rubber, and plastics where substitution is easier and domestic supply is less constrained.

Strategic rationale

Baryte is on the US DOE 2023 Critical Materials List, the EU Critical Raw Materials Act strategic-raw-materials annex, and the UK Critical Minerals Refresh List — primarily for its role as a drilling-fluid weighting agent and as radiation-shielding aggregate in nuclear and medical-imaging construction. India's Andhra Pradesh Mangampeta district hosts the world's single largest baryte deposit and the country accounts for an estimated 80% of global mine production. By reclassifying high-grade material as Restricted, the government is:

1. Ensuring domestic drilling supply — India's accelerating deepwater and unconventional upstream programme (ONGC KG basin; Vedanta Rajasthan EOR) consumes large volumes of Grade A/B drilling-grade baryte. 2. Capturing processing margin — finer-ground Grade A/B commands a significant premium over run-of-mine CDW; a licensing regime allows DGFT to tilt supply toward domestic grinding and value-add rather than raw-lump export. 3. Aligning with critical-minerals custody — the notification arrives alongside the May 2026 US–India Strategic Critical Minerals Framework (2026-05-26-us-india-strategic-critical-minerals-framework), under which baryte was discussed as a bilateral supply-chain priority.

Downstream implications

• Oilfield services supply chains: Halliburton, SLB, and Baker Hughes source

India-origin baryte for drilling-mud supply in Middle East and US Gulf Coast operations. A licensing requirement adds lead time and administrative friction, potentially diverting demand toward Moroccan or Chinese baryte suppliers.

• Radiation-shielding construction: Hospital and nuclear-plant construction

projects requiring high-density baryte aggregate from India will need pre-authorisation — a modest friction for large project procurement pipelines.

• China substitution risk: China is the next-largest baryte producer; the shift

may redirect some Grade A/B demand toward Chinese suppliers, partially offsetting the China-targeting intent of the US–India critical-minerals alignment.

Open questions

• Will DGFT publish specific authorisation quotas or apply case-by-case discretionary

licensing for Grade A/B baryte?

• Does the notification trigger automatic MFN quantity-ceiling review under India's WTO

Schedule commitments (baryte was unbound for export restrictions)?

• Will ONGC or domestic grinding industry groups receive priority-allocation licences?