Bokaro Steel to expand

The Centre will invest Rs 2,500 crore to upgrade Bokaro Steel Plant (BSL) in the 10th Five year Plan.

Union minister for steel Braja Kishore Tripathi said investments would be made on modernisation of the cold rolling mill, slag granulation of the blast furnace and other units.

Steel Authority of India Limited (SAIL) has cleared the BSL upgradation plan . The scheme would be implemented by end of the current fiscal year.

BSL will start up a fifth blast furnace to raise production of saleable steel to four million tonnes. By March-end 2004, BSL's production would go up to 3.6 million tonnes.

This would increase to 3.9 million tonnes by the end of 2004-05. Tripathi said BSL was expected to report profits of Rs 700crore or more in 2003-04.

Tripathi promised the government would stand by the domestic steel industry to prevent dumping of steel by foreign producers.

Indian steel exports were not solely dependent on buying from China and were in a position to export to USA and Europe as well.