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Jindal Steel and Power Ltd (JSPL) is exploring options to boost the prospects of the company’s coal gasification (coal to gas) plant in Angul, Odisha.
JSPL’s Managing Director and Group CEO, Ravi Uppal, said: “We are looking forward to setting up of an ammonia plant and other gas-based ancillary industries where we can supply the gas through pipelines in the vicinity of the coal gasification plant.”
UDAY benefitsThe company is keen on industries closer to the plant as the cost of gas escalates when it is liquefied and transported to farther locations.
The government’s ambitious DISCOM debt restructuring scheme, Ujjwal Discom Assurance Yojna (UDAY) is yet to bear fruit as power offtake remains on a slump in the country. Uppal told BusinessLine that “The whole thing will depend on when DISCOMs will start buying power. The DISCOMs are not buying power.”
Uppal said that UDAY was well intended as it lowered the burden of servicing debt on DISCOMs. However, after a large number of State governments are on board with the scheme, there has not been a spurt in demand for power as envisaged.
He said, “But now about 21 DISCOMs have signed the UDAY agreement, it is high time that they start buying and distributing power in a way that they don’t become a victim of cross subsidy.”
Rising salesDuring the third quarter of financial year 2017, JSPL has reported an 18 per cent rise in steel sales over the corresponding period of the previous financial year.
The company also reported a three times rise in pellet sales on a year-on-year basis.
A bulk of the improved sale numbers can be attributed to the protectionist measures against cheaper Chinese imports adopted by the government. Uppal said, “After imposition of a Minimum Import Price (MIP), the international price of steel has also increased.
“The introduction of MIP acted as deterrent and there has been a 59 per cent reduction in import of steel.”
Projecting an increase in the demand for steel in the country, Uppal said, “The Indian steel industry currently consumes about 84 million tonnes (mt). At a 5-6 per cent growth, we expect to add another 4-5 million tonnes of demand.
“The domestic industry also exports around 4-5 mt, this takes our projection of the total steel demand in the country to around 88 mt.”
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