Make aluminium the metal of choice for future: Mines Secretary

Union Mines Secretary Anil Mukim on Thursday urged the stakeholders to work towards increasing the domestic consumption of aluminium in a sustainable manner and make it the metal of choice for the future.

Addressing the International Conference on Aluminium (INCAL 2019) here, he stressed on value addition in the aluminium industry and encouraging the downstream industries in the country.

He also urged the industries to address the social and environmental issues and ensure sustainability.

Odisha, the aluminium capital of South Asia, provides tremendous opportunities to investors to set up downstream industries in aluminium, said state Industries Secretary Sanjeev Chopra.

"India's aluminium consumption is expected to grow at 17-18 per cent per annum, making it one of the largest consumption markets in the world. Odisha, the mineral hub of the country, is the largest producer of the metal contributing to 54 per cent of the country's total smelting capacity," said Chopra.

He said the upstream industry landscape is home to leading domestic and international companies such as Nalco, Hindalco and Vedanta with a capacity of over 600,000 tonne per annum.

"As per the Vision 2030 of the state government, the goal is to add value to at least 50 per cent of the primary metal produced in Odisha and develop industry-ready infrastructure to attract downstream and ancillary industries in the metals sector - steel, stainless steel and aluminium," informed the Industries Secretary.

Saying that a dedicated private industrial parks policy has been promulgated already, he said leading corporates such as Vedanta, Nalco, JSPL and Jindal Stainless, are in advanced stages of setting up downstream parks in the state.

Industrial Promotion and Investment Corporation of Odisha Limited (IPICOL) Managing Director Nitin Jawale showcased the aluminium downstream business ecosystem in Odisha and outlined the strategic advantages that the state offers to investors to set up downstream units in aluminium.

He invited the investors to explore setting up downstream units at the Angul Aluminium Park which is spread across 223 acres and is dedicated for downstream and ancillary industries in the aluminium sector.

Aluminium Association of India (AAI) Chairman Tapan Kumar Chand said: "INCAL 2019 has a three-pronged strategy to send a strong message to the stakeholders in the metal and Aluminium industry. At the international level, we are aiming to project aluminium as the futuristic metal and at the national level, we are committed to take steps to increase domestic consumption as there is a tremendous scope. And, at the state level, project mineral-rich Odisha as the 'aluminium capital' of India."

--IANS

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