SAIL gets approval for Bhilai, Bokaro revamp

Projects aimed at enhancing hot metal production by 55%

The board of directors of integrated steel producer, Steel Authority of India Ltd (SAIL), today gave its in-principle approval for two projects, one for revamping of Sinter Plant-2 in Bhilai Steel Plant and installation of an air turbo compressor and an oxygen turbo compressor at the oxygen plant in Bokaro Steel Plant. The move will cost more than Rs 180 crore.

With this, the total planned investment in different projects approved, both in-principle and final, during the current financial year stands at over Rs 2,500 crore.

These projects form a part of SAIL's corporate plan, which aims at enhancing the company's hot metal production from the current level of 13 million tonne (MT) per annum to 20 MT by 2011-12 at a total estimated investment of Rs 25,000 crore.

The revamping of Sinter Plant-2 will enable Bhilai Steel Plant to increase the annual production of sinter from the present level of 2.5 MT to 3.1 MT and will also help to improve the quality of sinter, a release from the company said.

This will also contribute to additional production of around 77,000 tonnes of pig iron from the three sinter making units of Bhilai Steel Plant.

The increased sinter burden is also expected to enhance the productivity of blast furnaces, effecting a substantial reduction in the cost of interproduction and coke rate.

The benefit will however accrue from the installation of electrostatic precipitators in all the four sinter machines of Sinter Plant-2.

The major projects under implementation in different units of SAIL include installation of bloom caster at Durgapur Steel Plant (Rs 271 crore), upgradation of ERW Pipe Plant (Rs 89 crore), rebuilding of coke oven battery (Rs 112 crore) and capital repair of Blast Furnace - 4 (Rs 118 crore) at Rourkela Steel Plant, rebuilding of coke oven battery (Rs 112 crore) and upgradation of blast furnace including gas cleaning plant (Rs 170 crore) as well as Wire Rod Mill (Rs 75 crore) and Plate Mill (Rs 64 crore) at Bhilai, rebuilding of coke oven battery (Rs 199 crore) at Bokaro and installation of AOD facilities (Rs 54 crore) at Alloy Steels Plant. SAIL's Rs 320-crore Long Rail project at Bhilai has recently been completed.