New Delhi, Sept. 10 -- With domestic steel demand projected to surge, India is preparing a sweeping overhaul of its iron ore mine auctions framework to boost production and deter cheap steel imports from countries such as China, Japan, South Korea and Vietnam, according to government officials and industry executives aware of the matter.

The Centre plans to make upfront payment the primary metric for mine allocation in auctions along with a premium that will be capped at 50%, the people cited above said on the condition of anonymity. So, a company that bids with the highest upfront payment offer plus the best premium offering gets the mine. If more than one company quotes, say, a premium of 40%, then upfront payment decides the winning b...