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Essar Steel has commissioned a six million tonne per annum (mtpa) pellet plant at Paradeep along with iron ore beneficiation facility at Dabuna (both in Odisha). A slurry pipeline of 253 km has also been put in place to transfer beneficiated iron ore to the pellet plant, said the company in a statement on Thursday.
Essar Steel had invested Rs 6,000 crore in setting up this integrated complex which was executed by its group company Essar Projects.
The company plans to increase the pellet capacity at Paradeep by another six mtpa soon with corresponding rise in beneficiation plant, taking the annual pellet production capacity in Odisha complex to 12 mtpa.
Pellets are a critical raw material and finds use in all iron making processes including blast furnace, Corex and DRI (direct reduced iron).
With the commissioning of the integrated plant, Essar Steel has become the largest pellet producer in India with an annual production capacity of 14 mtpa which includes eight mtpa at Vizag and rest in Paradeep.
Captive infrastructure
The Odisha pellet complex is backed by infrastructure that includes a 120 MW power plant and a captive berth at Paradeep port. This apart, the pellet plant is connected by a 9.5 km conveyor belt to the fully mechanised berth at Paradeep port operated by Essar Ports.
A major portion of iron ore produced in Odisha is in the form of fines which can be used in iron making only after converting into pellets.
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