SAIL looking at 3 states to set up Rs 50-bn steel plant with ArcelorMittal

SAIL and ArcelorMittal had entered into an MoU to explore setting up an auto-grade steel manufacturing facility under a JV in India

Steel PSU SAIL is considering locations in three states of Gujarat, Andhra Pradesh and Maharashtra to set up Rs 50-billion auto-grade steel plant in joint venture with ArcelorMittal, Steel Minister Chaudhary Birender Singh said on Monday.     

"SAIL people say that there are three places they can consider for putting up that plant. One is Maharashtra, another one is in Gurajat and third is in Andhra (Pradesh)," the steel minister said.

The proposed plant would be set up in one of these three states, he told reporters after the release of the corporate sports policy for central public sector enterprises under the steel ministry.

The auto-grade steel plant project with a capacity of 1.5 million tonnes per annum (MTPA) will be scaled to 2.5 MTPA, he added.

"A meeting was held about a month back which was attended by (Lakshmi Niwas) Mittal of ArcelorMittal and SAIL people. In that meeting both the parties agreed on one thing that the details will have to be worked out for finalisation of JV (joint venture)," the minister said.

According to official sources, negotiations were still underway with regard to detailed technical agreements of the joint venture.

Domestic steel giant SAIL in December last year announced that its board had approved a proposal to enter into a joint venture with the world's largest steelmaker ArcelorMittal for manufacturing high-end automotive steel.

The PSU had also said that definitive agreements in that regard would be finalised in the due course subject to financial viability.

SAIL and ArcelorMittal had entered into an MoU in May 2015 to explore the possibility of setting up an auto-grade steel manufacturing facility under a joint venture in India.