Mumbai/New Delhi, Sept. 2 -- The government could reallocate non-operational iron ore mines held by Steel Authority of India Ltd (Sail) and Odisha Mining Corporation Ltd (OMC) and even levy export tax to boost supply of the key input needed to produce steel.

The government could reallocate these mines either through fresh auctions, or transfer them to state-run firms to boost output of iron ore, according to a senior government official and industry executives, all of whom spoke on the condition of anonymity.

Several steps to bolster iron ore supply, including auction of around 20 million tonnes of ore lying at pre-auction mine sites, and expansion of state-run NMDC's mining capacity, were discussed at a high-level inter-ministerial mee...