VISAKHAPATNAM | Aug 03, 2015: Rashtriya Ispat Nigam Limited, the corporate entity of Visakhapatnam Steel Plant, has finalised a grandiose plan to expand its capacity from 6.3 million tonne to 11 or 11.5 million tonne besides taking up several diversification projects.
As part of its corporate vision, the company is now investing Rs.5,000 crore on modernisation and capital repairs to critical units of steelmaking like blast furnaces to achieve an additional capacity of one million tonne by 2016-17. The plan to expand capacity by four or 4.5 million tonne will involve an investment of Rs.18,000 crore to Rs.22,250 crore by 2022.
The company recently completed expansion from three to 6.3 million tonne with an investment of Rs.12,300 crore mobilised through internal accruals. The Central Government has listed the Navratna company for disinvestment in phases.
As part of diversification, RINL Chairman-cum-Managing Director P. Madhusudan told The Hindu in an interview that they would be forming a special purpose vehicle to implement the joint venture with Power Grid Corporation of India to manufacture of transmission line towers and tower parts with an estimated investment of Rs.331.88 crore in Visakhapatnam.
The foundation stone for the project would be laid at Ukkunagaram, the VSP Township within a month or two, Mr. Madhusudan said.
He disclosed that following the advice of the Central Government, they would be signing an agreement with the Railways for establishing a Rs.278-crore axle manufacturing unit at New Jaipalguri in West Bengal.
The tender for forged wheel plant as a joint venture with Railways at Rae Bareilly in Uttar Pradesh is also in progress.
RINL is also trying to rope in a third partner in the joint venture it is planning with National Mineral Development Corporation to lay a slurry pipeline from mining site at Bailadilla in Chattisgarh to Visakhapatnam to meet its raw material requirement with an investment of Rs.5,000 crore to Rs.5,500 crore.
(Source: http://www.thehindu.com/)