VSP launches site-levelling works

The Visakhapatnam Steel Plant has embarked on its capacity expansion by inaugurating the works on site-levelling for the rolling mills.

The total area to be covered is 10.63 lakh square metres and the quantity of earthwork is likely to be more than 22 lakh cubic metres. The entire work will be completed in four months as per the schedule, according to a press release.

Once the work on site-levelling for the four rolling mills is complete, VSP will take up piling, civil and structural work. The work on the first stage of rolling mills, ie wire rod mill-2 and seamless tube mill, will begin within one-and-a-half months. The second stage work, which includes light structural mill and special bar mills, will be taken up subsequently.

VSP has got the government's nod to expand its capacity to 6.3 million tonnes from the existing 3 million tonnes. For this, the steel plant is spending about Rs 8,600 crore over the next three years.

About 50 per cent of the investment will be generated through internal accruals and the remaining will be raised through financial institutions. About 40 banks, including some foreign ones, have already evinced interest in funding the expansion project.

Y Siva Sagar Rao, chairman and managing director of VSP, inaugurated the site-levelling works on Wednesday.