Deputy Prime Minister of Luxembourg Etienne Schneider today called on Steel and Mines Minister Narendra Singh Tomar and discussed the proposed joint venture (JV) between state-run SAIL and ArcelorMittal.
During the meeting, Tomar pointed specific areas such as Special Purpose Vehicles for integrated steel plants, mineral exploration & mining, steel-making technology and green technologies, where Luxembourg can invest, Steel ministry said in a statement today.
"The delegation (Luxembourg) expressed keen interest in progress of the SAIL-Arcelor Mittal JV, offered to partner for coke-oven making technologies," it added.
It also highlighted how companies from Luxembourg are supporting Make in India initiative by building facilities for equipment services and coke oven battery technology.
In May last year, NRI billionaire Lakshmi Mittal-led ArcelorMittal and domestic steel giant SAIL inked a memorandum of understanding to look at the possibility of setting up an automotive steel plant in the country. The estimated cost of setting up the plant is rs 5,000 crore.
In January, Tomar told PTI: "We have signed an MoU with ArcelorMottal for a steel plant. We want to finalise the project this year. Work on it is progressing."
The proposed JV will construct a cold rolling mill and other downstream finishing facilities in India, touted as one of the fastest-growing automotive markets in the world with production expected to double between 2014 and 2020, from 3.6 million units to 7.3 million units.
Schneider explained to Tomar how the Luxembourg steel industry had played a key role in the country's formative years and that some companies are leading players the modern steel and green technology space.
In last one decade, the country has diversified into sectors like financial, information-communication-technology, space, satellite and logistics, he added.
