Indian Rare Earths Limited (IREL), a public sector undertaking (PSU) under the department of atomic energy, has firmed up plans to invest about Rs 400 crore in the next two years to scale up the capacity of its three different units, including the Orissa unit and also to set up a monazite processing plant.
"While Rs 250 core has been earmarked for doubling the capacity of the Orissa Sands Complex (OSCOM) to about 5 lakh tonnes and also to set up a 10,000 tonne per annum monazite processing plant, the balance Rs 150 crore will be invested in raising the capacity of IREL’s other two units located at Chavara (Kerala) and Manavalakurchi (Tamil Nadu)", S Siva Subramanian, chairman and managing director, IREL told Business Standard.
The present capacity of OSCOM, located near Chhatrapur in Orissa's Ganjam district is 2.20 lakh tonnes and about Rs 150 crore would be invested to increase its capacity. Moreover, Rs 100 crore would be invested by IREL to set up the monazite processing plant at the OSCOM complex. The proposed monazite processing plant, the biggest in the country is expected to start operations from the middle of next year, claimed Subramaniam. He was here to attend several functions, organised by the OSCOM. At present, the IREL has a 4,000-tonne monazite processing plant at its Alwaye unit in Kerala.
IREL is the only producer of the monazite mineral, containing thorium and uranium. Uranium is being extracted at the rare earth division of the company and is used in the nuclear reactors as fuel, while thorium is considered as the fuel for the future nuclear energy programme of the country.
The zircon mineral being produced by IREL is the raw material for the manufacture of zircaloy tubes used for filling uranium fuel in the nuclear reactors, informed Subramaniam. "The process to start work for the proposed 10,000 tonne zircon processing plant in the OSCOM complex has already started and it is expected to be completed within a year", he said.
Similarly the process of doubling of capacity of OSCOM has also started. “We are only awaiting the clearance from the Union ministry of environment to start the work", he added.
