Essar Steel urged to seek consent for developing iron ore block

Essar Steel has bagged the Ghoraburhani-Sagasahi block in the first iron ore auctions in Odisha

The Odisha State Pollution Control Board has asked Essar Steel to apply for consent to develop its iron ore block in the state. Essar Steel has bagged the Ghoraburhani-Sagasahi block in the first ever iron ore auctions held in Odisha after outbidding contenders like Tata Steel, Jindal Steel & Power (JSPL) and Bhushan Steel. The block has 100 million tonne of high grade iron ore deposits and is supposed to feed Essar Steel's flagship operations at Hazira, Gujarat).

Essar Steel has proposed a production capacity of 7.16 million tonne per annum (mtpa) run of the mine product from the iron ore block. As part of the project, the steel company is also setting up a crushing & screening plant and a beneficiation plant with a capacity of 6.7 mtpa over an area of 139.16 hectares (ha) at Ghoraburhani, Sagasahi and Kalmang villages situated in Sundargarh district.

The Odisha government has issued the letter of intent to Essar Steel after it emerged as the preferred bidder in the first iron ore block offered for e-auctions in Odisha. The block is at G2 exploration stage and located in Koira sector in Sundargarh district.

The mineral concession area is spread over 139.16 hectares including 20.88 hectares of forest land, 110.69 hectares of government land and the balance 7.58 hectares of private land. Survey of the mineral block has been done by the Geological Survey of India (GSI).

Currently, Essar Steel runs a 12 million tonne per annum (mtpa) iron ore beneficiation plant at Dabuna in Keonjhar district and six mtpa pelletisation complex at Paradeep. The iron ore mine in Odisha is expected to meet 50 per cent of the firm's pellet-making facility at Paradeep.

The pellet produced at Essar Steel's Paradeep facility is primarily meant for use at its 10 million tonne integrated steel plant at Hazira.