DNA reported that ArcelorMittal may finally get to start construction of its first steel plant in the country early next fiscal as it hopes to complete land acquisition for the plant in Jharkhand by the end of this fiscal.
A company spokesperson said that “We are hoping that by December end we will have up to 1,000 acres and by the end of the first quarter of the next calendar year, the entire 2,500 acres should be in possession, immediately after which construction can begin.”
The spokesman said that “We still adhere to the MoU with the state and will build 12 million tonnes per annum in two phases. Just that the two phases might be at different locations adding that each phase will in turn have two stages of 3 million tonnes per annum each.”
The spokesman further added that “We have allocation of coal and mining and prospecting licence for iron ore in the Singhbhum district and most of the clearances from the ministry of environment and forest are in place.”
ArcelorMittal had signed MoU with the Jharkhand government in 2005 to set up a 12 million tones per annum steel plant in the state, along with a 750 MW power plant. The total investment planned for the project was over INR 50,000 crore. But since then, the plant was languishing in papers as the company waited to get allocation of water, mines for iron ore and coal and approvals from the ministry of environment and forests. Questions were also raised on the company’s commitment to see the plan through. The company recently changed its plan to build 12 million tonnes per annum plant at a single location and decided to build two plants in the state with a capacity of 6 million tonnes per annum each.