Nalco gets Odisha govt's nod for new smelter facility

The company will invest Rs 16,345 cr

National Aluminium Company (Nalco) has got the approval of Odisha's High Level Clearance Authority to set up 0.5 million tonne per annum (mtpa) aluminium smelter and 1,260 MW captive power plant (CPP) at a cost of Rs 16345.89 crore.

The smelter cum CPP would come up at Kepse in Sundergarh district.

he new smelter facility proposed by the Navratna firm needs 2,500 acres of land.

"Nalco's new smelter project needs 50 cusecs of water and they will draw water from the Hirakud reservoir. The project will generate direct employment for 4,000 people”, said state chief secretary B K Patnaik.

A senior Nalco official said, “There is no official communication yet from the  state government regarding the approval of our new smelter project. The company will be applying to the Coal ministry for a coal block for the smelter project.”

Nalco currently runs a 0.46 mtpa smelter plant and 1,200 MW CPP at Angul. It aimed to expand capacity of this smelter plant to 0.57 mtpa and that of CPP to 1,700 MW in the course of its third phase expansion being taken up at a cost of Rs 7,500 crore.

The aluminium major has also planned a one mtpa greenfield alumina refinery based on bauxite from Kutch area in Gujarat at an investment of Rs 4,200 crore. Bauxite sample testing is underway and Nalco expects to zero in on technology for the refinery very soon. The project is expected to be commissioned in four years.