ArcelorMittal Nippon Steel (AMNS)
India is going to break ground for the proposed Paradip plant by January,
kicking off construction of a 7 million tonnes per annum project.
This is going to be the first
greenfield plant of the company in the country and one of the few ArcelorMittal
has built around the world. Known for its penchant to grow by acquisitions,
ArcelorMittal holds 60 per cent share of AMNS India with Japan’s Nippon Steel
having the rest.
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Hemant Sharma, principal secretary of
the industry department, Odisha, said the state government has given 1,485 acre
land to the company for the proposed project. “The target is to break ground by
December-January,” the secretary disclosed, adding that the investment in the
steel plant is going to be Rs 38,000 crore.
AMNS already has a presence in
Odisha. The company has an iron ore mine, a slurry pipeline and a pellet plant
in Paradip, the coastal town where one of India’s major ports is located. Apart
from Paradip, the steel major has also proposed a plant at Kendrapara in
Odisha. However, that project could take some more time to take off.
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At present, AMNS India’s integrated
steel plant is located at Hazira, Gujarat, which was acquired from bankruptcy
court in 2019 by ArcelorMittal and Nippon Steel. Since then, the JV has been on
a buying spree, acquiring downstream steel makers (Uttam Galva) or back-end
infrastructure (port terminal, power plants and slurry pipeline).
Additionally, it has also announced
expansion of the Hazira plant from 9 mt to 15 mt and building value added
downstream units, for a combined investment of $7.5 billion. While the
downstream units will be ready in phases by 2024, the expanded capacity at
Hazira will be ready by 2026.
AMNS did not immediately comment on
the Paradip project on Tuesday even as the company in the earnings release in
July had said that preparatory work for Paradip and Kendrapara integrated steel
plants are underway. Environment clearance application has been done for both
projects, it added.