HYDERABAD: The search for gold is set to resume in Andhra Pradesh with one of the private firms, which got licence for prospecting studies, submitting its proposals to the Union ministry of environment, forests and climate change seeking forest clearance.The prospecting studies will be conducted in the forest areas of Sadukonda and Tamballapalle in Chittoor district. Apart from gold, the firm will also look for iron, tungsten, copper, lead, zinc and silver among others. The proposal came up for hearing before the forest clearance panel on January 5. However, the panel kept the proposal pen ding seeking more information on prospecting studies. Once the panel gives its nod, prospecting studies will be taken up covering about 900 hectares of forest area The new search for gold is likely to give fillip to the AP government's plans to set up a gold refinery in Krishna district The Indian Bureau of Mines (IBM) has estimated that Andhra Pradesh has a potential gold ore of 1.22 crore tonnes.Earlier estimates had put the reserves at about 68 lakh tonnes of gold ore. Prospecting studies have been held up in Andhra Pra desh for about a decade for various reasons. The latest proposal by Geomysore Services (India) Private Limited has revived the hope of gold prospecting and excavation in AP , which incidentally has about three per cent of India's gold ore.Earlier, drilling along Ramagiri Gold Fields covering about half a dozen villages including Bhadrampalle and Ramagiri in Chittoor district yielded good gold prospects. IBM studies reveal “feeble to moderate“ values of gold in Tellakonda village in neighbouring Kadapa district. Jonnegiri in Anantapur district is estimated to produce about 70 tonnes of gold a year. Banaganapalle, Pagadarai and Yerragudi in Kurnool and Jaggaiahpet in Krishna district also showed encouraging signs of gold, according to official data. An IBM annual report for AP traces gold reserves in small quantities along rivers and streams in the state.According to state government data on minerals, there are a number of gold-bearing green stone schist belts in Chittoor, Anantapur, Kurnool, Guntur, Prakasam, Kadapa and Nellore districts. Officials have already identified about three dozen gold-bearing belts, which extend from 16 km to 185 km in length. The average assay of three to five grams of gold per tonne of ore is present in such belts. About 62,000 kg of gold can be obtained from these three dozen identified sites.Besides, officials have also estimated about presence of 22,000 kg of gold in the old gold mines in the greenstone belt near Venkatampalle in Chittoor district. A report of the sub group II on metals and minerals, go vernment of In dia, has also listed several areas in AP that “could be developed into mines by 2025-30“.They are Bhad rampalle, Rama pura, Venkatampalle, Chinnabhavi and Jibutil. Of these, Chinnabhavi alone has 634.31 tonnes of gold ore.