Odisha presses Nalco for aluminium supply contract with Midal Cables

The aluminium maker has been refusing to enter into metal sales pact since 2012

The state government has asked National Aluminium Company (Nalco) to initiate steps for executing a metal sales agreement with Bahrain-based Midal cables, which intends to set up its wire rod factory in the state in the proposed aluminium park.

The industry department had to intervene as Nalco has already refused to sign a supply agreement with Midal in 2012.

On February 17 this year, Chairman of Midal Cables has met state industry department secretary in this regard and had sought support in terms of hot metal supply contract from Nalco.

"A confirmation from Nalco for execution of hot metal supply contract with Midal cables has become inevitable at this juncture for operationalisation of Park," said Vishal K Dev, state industries secretary in a letter to Nalco Chairman and Managing Director recently.

"In this context I would request your personal intervention for early disposal of the matter," Dev added.

Midal wanted long term supply agreement for a period of 25 years with Nalco, which had rejected the offer. However, Nalco has maintained that it would provide hot metal to all the units of the park regularly.

In 2012, Midal Cables Ltd had submitted a proposal to set up an aluminium conductor and rod manufacturing unit in the state at an investment of Rs 250-300 crore.Its facility was to come up at the aluminium downstream and ancillary products park at Angul, developed jointly by the state's nodal land acquisition agency- Industrial Infrastructure Development Corporation of Odisha (Idco) and Nalco. The overseas investor had sought 30-40 acres of land within this aluminium park.

Idco has already allotted land to Midal in the proposed park. So far, it had aggregated more than 120 acre land and is implementing the external connectivity infrastructure to operationalise the park at the earlier, Dev said in the letter.