The government has cleared Steel Authority of India's (SAIL) proposal to revive the Sindri unit of the erstwhile Fertiliser Corporation of India (FCIL) in Jharkhand, in which the state-run firm proposes to invest around Rs 35,000 crore for steel, power and fertiliser plants.
"Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA) gave a major fillip to Maharatna SAIL yesterday by approving its proposal for revival of the Sindri unit of FCIL by SAIL," the state-run company said in a statement.
SAIL proposes to set up of a 5.6 million tonne per annum greenfield steel making plant and a 1.15 million tonne fertiliser plant with investment of around Rs 26,000 crore and Rs 4,450 crore, respectively. It also envisages establishment of a power plant with an outlay of around Rs 4,000 crore, SAIL said.
The entire project would be implemented within 42 months from the date of getting all clearances, SAIL Chairman CS Verma said, adding that a dedicated project office would also be created to monitor the project development.
The steel maker said that the entire project would be steered by a special purpose vehicle with a PSU character having three subsidiaries to look after the steel, fertiliser and power plants.
The proposed steel plant would have a diversified flat product-mix catering to the high-end steel market, it said, adding that while 4.2 million tonne capacity of the plant was proposed to be dedicated for production of HR products, the remaining would be earmarked for CR items.
"A coal or gas based power plant of suitable capacity will be set up under the plan to meet the requirements of the steel plant and township. There is also a provision for selling any surplus power generated to outside markets," it said.
The proposed 1.15 million tonne gas-based urea plant would be set up after dismantling and disposing of the existing urea plant at the site.
"The government has already given its in-principle consent to allocate natural gas for the project. SAIL is scouting for a suitable partner for setting up the fertiliser project," it said.
SAIL said that the total land available with FCIL at Sindri is 6,652.6 acres, out of which about 5,481.6 acres of land would be available for the proposed project.
