New Delhi: ArcelorMittal on Monday said it has approached the Karnataka government for setting up a steel plant in the state, even as its proposed Rs 1-lakh-crore steel projects in Jharkhand and Orissa have failed to take off amid problems in acquiring land and regulatory bottlenecks.
"ArcelorMittal India has applied for approval of its proposed steel plant in Karnataka to the single window clearance committee of the state government," the company said in a statement.
However, the NRI billionaire LN Mittal-led company maintained that "setting up an integrated plant in the state would depend on a host of techno-economic factors.
"We would disclose more details on cost, capacity,
timeline etc once the technical studies are completed in about
three to four months," the source added.
Sources said that the world's largest steel maker is
planning to set up a 6-million tonne per annum steel plant in
the Southern state involving an estimated investment of Rs
30,000 crore. The company approached the Karnataka government
committee with the proposal on Saturday.
The company has been facing problems in acquiring land
besides "regulatory hurdles" for setting its 12-MTPA steel
plants involving Rs 1-lakh crore investment, one each in
Jharkhand and Orissa, and had said that options were open with
the company to shift the sites of the proposed plants.
"The proposed plant in Karnataka would be in addition to
the company's planned Rs 1-lakh-crore steel projects in
Jharkhand and Orissa," the company sources added.
Earlier this month, Minister of State for Steel A Sai
Prathap had said that Karnataka would set up a steel corridor
and ArcelorMittal could consider setting up a steel plant
there.
Last month Mittal had said during a conference call when
asked if the company's was planning to go to Karnataka, "We
are in India, so I am sure my people must be discussing and
talking with various options and opportunities."
The company had threatened to withdraw from Jharkhand and
Orissa on account of inordinate delays in getting land and
regulatory approvals for the proposed projects.
However, Union Steel Minister Virbhadra Singh had last week
said there was no communication from the company in this
regard and the ministry was talking to the states concerned
for expediting clearances for its projects.
The steel major had proposed to set up a plant in
Keonjhar, Orissa, and at the tribal-dominated area between
Khunti and Gumla districts of Jharkhand.
ArcelorMittal needs about 10,000 acre land in
Jharkhand and about 8,000 acre in Orissa. It has been
allocated the Karampada mines in Jharkhand with estimated
reserves of 65 MT iron ore against its needs of 600 MT to feed
its 12-MTPA plant. The company still awaits iron ore mining
leases in Orissa.
PTI
First Published: Tuesday, November 24, 2009, 00:22