Karwar (DHNS): The tender process for the sale of 30,000 tonnes of iron ore lying at the Belekeri port here for the last 13 years is now in the final stages.

It is said that the sale has been successfully completed in the tender process undertaken for the sixth time.

Once complete, the process will see 18 mounds of the ore being cleared from the port, bringing respite from the dust that pervaded the premises.

A company from another state is reportedly purchasing the ore. It is said to have paid the preliminary charges to the department of mines and geology. The firm is likely to get the orders for lifting the ore on Thursday.

The ore had been confiscated on March 20, 2010. The forest department had, on June 8 of the same year, filed complaints in the police stations of Karwar that a portion of the ore, under the custody of the ports department, had gone missing.

Cases are pending in various courts, following probes by the CID and the CBI.