Financial Daily from THE HINDU group of publications
Friday, Feb 07, 2003
Financial Daily from THE HINDU group of publications Friday, Feb 07, 2003 |
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Industry & Economy
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Steel KIOCL looking at iron ore sources for pellet plant Our Bureau
MANGALORE, Feb. 6 IN its continuing search for `alternative' sites to ensure its survival, Kudremukh Iron Ore Company Ltd (KIOCL) has applied for mining rights in the Ramanadurga area of Bellary as well as Chikkanayakanahalli near Tumkur. In fact, the company, which moved into the crisis-management mode soon after the Supreme Court set a 2005 deadline for winding up mining operations in the Western Ghats, is now looking for sources of iron ore to keep afloat its pellet plant located in Panambur. While the Ramanadurga area is estimated to have reserves of approximately 212 million tonnes of the total estimated reserves of 715 million tonnes in the Bellary-Hospet area, Chikkanayakanahalli is said to have about 60 million tonnes. The recent decision on `dereservation' taken by the Karnataka Government is said to have created a `rush' of sorts with a large number of `private parties' clamouring for a share of the ore. According to KIOCL General Manager, Mr M.B. Padiyar, an application for mining rights in the Ramanadurga area in Bellary has been pending before the Karnataka Government since March 2000. In the meantime, the company went ahead with its diversification plans and in 2001 set up its 70,000-tonne-per-annum pig iron plant at a cost of Rs 305 crore. The slump in pig iron prices has, however, hit its operations. Against this backdrop, KIOCL is looking for a source of iron ore to `feed' its pelletisation plant, which has been in operation since 1987. The plant produces an average of 3.5 million tonnes of iron oxide pellets every year with an annual sales turnover of $105 million (Rs 505 crore). These pellets are being exported to China and Taiwan and `concentrate' is being sold to Iran, Japan and China. Moreover, according to Mr Padiyar, KIOCL has plans to further invest Rs 500 crore to set up a ductile iron spun pipe project, a coke oven plan and an ore grinding and handling system for the pelletisation plant.
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