JSW to invest Rs 5500cr to raise capacity

JSW (Jindal North West) Steel Limited has lined up Rs 5,500 crore investments over the next two years to expand its steel production capacity by about 3.7 million tonnes.

JSW Steel currently operates four steel units with a production capacity of about 5.6 million tonnes. The company has embarked on capacity expansion plans for two of its units "� Jindal Vijaynagar and Southern India Steel Company Limited (SISCL).

Speaking to Business Standard, Anunay Kumar, director (business development), JSW Steel Limited, said at present, the production capacity at Jindal Vijaynagar was 4 million tonnes, which the company was enhancing to 7 million tonnes with an investment of about Rs 5,000 crore.

"We are investing Rs 5,000 crore for the expansion works. By October 2008, the production capacity at Vijaynagar would be increased to 7 million tonnes," he said. The Vijaynagar unit produces flat products and galvanised steel.

As regards its Salem-based SISCL, he said: "Currently, we are producing 3 lakh tonnes of TMT bars and wire rods at SISCL. We are investing about Rs 500 crore in the capacity expansion, after which the unit would be able to produce 10 lakh tonnes." The expansion works would be complete by March 2007.

Of the total steel production, JSW Steel exported about 1.8 million tonnes to 32 countries during the last fiscal. It achieved about Rs 7,500-crore turnover from steel business last fiscal and was targeting Rs 8,500 crore this year, he said.

This apart, the company is planning to set up a 10-million tonne greenfield unit with an investment of Rs 32,000 crore in Jharkhand.

"Following the Mecons feasibility report, we have signed an MoU with the Jharkhand government to set up a 10-million tonne capacity steel unit including a 800 Mw captive power plant with a plan outlay of about Rs 32,000 crore. Accordingly, we have applied for allotment of an iron ore mine and have identified about 7,000 acres of land at Chandil near Ranchi," he said.