Tata Steel has expanded the crude steel capacity at its Odisha facility at an investment of Rs 27,000 crore, the company said on September 20.
The steel major commissioned what would be India’s largest blast furnace at Kalinganagar, Odisha. With this phase of expansion, Tata Steel said the total capacity at the plant will go up from 3 million tonnes per annum (MTPA) to 8 MTPA. The ramp up expands Tata Steel's flat products portfolio, the company had said previously.
"The expansion not only strengthens Tata Steel's position as a leader in high-end, value-added steel segments but also showcases our advanced engineering prowess," TV Narendran, CEO and MD, Tata Steel said.
With this expansion, Odisha has become Tata Steel's largest investment destination in India, at a total investment of over Rs 1 lakh crore in the last 10 years.
Tata Steel's FY24 annual crude steel production capacity was at 35 MTPA, with manufacturing
assets spread across India, the Netherlands, UK, and Thailand. In India, Tata Steel operates in Jharkhand as well as Odisha, with an overall capacity of 21.6 MTPA, and has proposed to ramp it up to 35-40 MTPA by 2030.
The new blast furnace boosts Tata Steel's overall production capacity, helping in meeting demands of industries such as automotive, infrastructure, power, shipbuilding, and defence. Tata Steel added that the company is committed to boost private investment in India. The plant will also provide advantages in specific areas like oil & gas, and construction.
The blast furnace will have a zero-process water discharge plan, along with rainwater harvesting. Tata Steel has claimed several technological firsts with the commissioning of this plant.
Tata Steel has also set for itself a Net Zero emissions target by 2045.
The commissioning of the new phase at Tata Steel's Odisha plant comes at a time when India's steel industry has been complaining about cheap steel imports from China and Vietnam. Even the Minister of Heavy Industries, HD Kumaraswamy, had recently said that he will push for higher tariffs on Chinese steel import and try to convince the Finance Ministry to raise import duty to over 12 percent from the current 7.5 percent.
Discover the latest Business News, Sensex, and Nifty updates. Obtain Personal Finance insights, tax queries, and expert opinions on Moneycontrol or download the Moneycontrol App to stay updated!
Find the best of Al News in one place, specially curated for you every weekend.
Stay on top of the latest tech trends and biggest startup news.
