SAIL’s manufacturing capacity to be hiked to 19 mt

Manufacturing capacity of state-owned Steel Authority of India (SAIL) will go up to 19 million tonnes next fiscal from 14 mt now, with the start of production in two blast furnaces, a top company official has said.

“Two blast furnaces will start production next fiscal. This will help us to raise our steel capacity to 19 mt from 14 mt now,” SAIL Chairman, Mr C.S. Verma, said on the sidelines of the Global Steel Summit here today.

SAIL has embarked on a Rs 72,000-crore expansion plan to take its steel-making capacity to 24 mt by 2013-14. The company also plans to further expand its capacity to 45 mt by 2020.

Mr Verma said SAIL’s Rs 12,650-crore capital expenditure plan for the current fiscal was the highest in its history. Next fiscal, it will go up further to Rs 14,500 crore.

On steel prices, he said they would remain more or less stable in the short-term, though the demand for the metal would be “brisk” in the current quarter.

“I don’t think prices will go up or down in short-term. The demand is very good currently. This quarter is going to be a brisk quarter. For the year as a whole, steel demand growth should be seven per cent,” he said, adding that the price of raw material should also stay at the current level.

On the proposed joint venture with Posco, Mr Verma said it is “very very close” and everything should happen “very soon’’.

“I am using the words “very soon” for the first time,” he said.

SAIL-Posco joint venture aims to set up a plant at an investment of Rs 16,000 crore in Bokaro to produce 3 mtpa auto-grade steel at Bokaro.

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