Capacity utilisation at JSW's Karnataka plant at 80% till Sept-end

The company had used seven-nine per cent scrap in making the alloy, despite hurdles in procuring good quality iron ore

The shutdown at a JSW Steel corex furnace at the company’s 10-million tonne Vijayanagar plant in Karnataka was expected to keep capacity utilisation at the unit at 80 per cent until September-end, a source close to the development told Business Standard on Thursday.

In a release early this week, the company had said the corex furnace was shut for relining and capacity enhancement. The furnace would commence production by September-end, it had added.

In July, the Mumbai-based primary steel maker produced 9,91,000 tonnes of crude steel, 47 per cent more than in the corresponding period last year. “A lot of low-grade iron ore has gone into making this crude steel, as the quality of ore available was poor,” said the source. “We (JSW Steel) have been able to use this low-grade ore mainly because of the benefication plant we have.”

Processing low-grade iron ore through a benefication unit allows steel producers to enhance the quality and use the iron ore to make crude steel.

The source said due to increased benefication at the Karnataka plant, the cost of producing steel had risen. On the usage of scrap for making steel, the source said the company had used seven-nine per cent scrap in making the alloy, despite hurdles to procuring good quality iron ore.

JSW Steel produces long, as well as flat products, used in the construction and automobile industries, respectively.