An expert appraisal committee (EAC) under the Indian government is scheduled to meet next week to set up the terms of reference (ToR) for the iron ore beneficiation plant project of Essar Minmet Ltd in the state of Odisha, a move that will take it a step closer to its environment clearance.
“… the project proposals… will be considered by the reconstituted EAC,” a notification from the ministry of environment, forest and climate change read on the parivesh.nic.in portal. The meeting to take up Essar’s project would be held on March 31.
The notification listed Essar Minmet’s 14.3 million tonnes (mn t) per annum beneficiation plant project in Tikarpada in Kendujhar in Odisha for prescribing ToR.
After getting the ToR, companies generally take about few months to comply with its stipulations, following which they can get the crucial environment clearance, according to a SteelMint analyst. They can then get the consent to establish followed by consent to operate which entitles them to start building the plant.
The project is part of a grander plan envisaging a pellet plant, a slurry pipeline and ultimately, a steel plant, according to sources in Odisha, and it could make the energy to infrastructure conglomerate another entrant in India’s steel industry.
On January 30, SteelMint was the first to say Essar Minmet is conceptualising an 8mt steel plant in the state and is in the process of conducting a feasibility study. For now, the overall spend for the beneficiation plant, the slurry pipeline and the pellet plant is seen at Rs 6,650 crore.
Essar’s promoters put up a tough fight to retain their debt-laden plant in Gujarat which was bought over by ArcelorMittal in 2019, and now they look set to re-enter the business they knew well with these new plants in Odisha.
India is the world’s second largest steel producer behind China with a production capacity of around 140 mn t, but it is not enough in a country where infrastructure, construction and automobile sectors are growing at a rapid pace.
A questionnaire sent to the spokesperson of the Essar group seeking updates on the beneficiation plant did not fetch an immediate reply.
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