Jindal Steel and Power Ltd is planning to ramp up steel production capacity to about 15 million tonnes over the next 5-7 years, a senior company official told Reuters on Tuesday. Sushil Maroo, the company's finance director, said work had started on a 6-million-tonne steel plant in Orissa, which is expected to be ready in five years. He said the company was in the process of placing orders for equipment and materials for the project. Maroo added Jindal Steel had acquired the assets of a local firm, Bihar Alloys and Steel, in Jharkhand six months ago and is revamping the plant. It will have an annual production capacity of 3 million tonnes of steel, he added.
The company was in the process of doubling capacity at its only existing unit, in Chhattisgarh, to 6 million tonnes in 3-5 years, he said. Earlier this month, Jindal won approval from the Bolivia to exploit the giant El Muton iron ore deposit and produce steel in the east of the South American nation. El Muton, which lies near the Brazilian border, is estimated to contain iron-ore reserves of more than 40 billion tonnes, though they are said to be of medium-grade quality. As part of the project, Jindal has vowed to develop an integrated steel plant with an annual capacity of 1.7 million tonnes, which would start up by 2010.
Source : Reuters India
27th November, 2007