JSPL to Establish 1.2 MMTPA Greenfield Rail Mill in Angul
Jindal Steel & Power Ltd. (JSPL) will be setting up a greenfield rail & heavy structure mill of 1.2 Million Metric Tonnes Per Annum (MMTPA) capacity at Angul, Odisha. This information was shared by JSPL in a stock filing dated 13th April 2023.
Upcoming Angul Rail Mill to Double JSPL’s Rail Manufacturing Capacity
As of now, JSPL’s total rail manufacturing capacity stands at 1 MMTPA from its existing facility at Raigarh. Therefore, the aforementioned upcoming Angul rail mill will more than double the company’s rail-making capacity to 2.2 MMTPA.
Speaking about this capacity addition, Mr. Bimlendra Jha, Managing Director, Jindal Steel & Power said, “JSP is proactively adding and augmenting further Rail manufacturing capacity to support the modernization of the Indian Rail network”. Mr. Jha further explained that the company seeks to export rails after addressing domestic requirements.
JSPL’s Facility to Supply Rails to Key Projects, Reduce Dependence on Imports
Jindal Steel’s Rails Designed for Metro, High-Speed Rail Projects
JSPL manufactures speciality rails in different grades such as 1175 Heat Treated (HT), R350 HT rails, Asymmetric Rails, and 1080 Head Hardened (HH) rails. These rail grades are suitable for high-load and high-speed applications.
As per JSPL’s stock filing, these rails are designed for handling heavy axle loads exceeding 25 Metric Tonnes and rail speeds of up to 200 Kmph. Therefore, these rails find applications in Metro Rail projects, Bullet Train projects and other High-Speed Rail Corridors.
Angul Plant to Reduce India’s Dependence on Finished Steel Imports
As per a Reuters article dated 5th April 2023, India’s finished Steel exports during the 2022-23 Financial Year have dropped by 50.2% to about 6.7 million tonnes from FY-22. The country’s Steel imports simultaneously soared to 6 million tonnes in FY-23, which is 29% higher than imports for the previous fiscal. Even as India was a net exporter of finished Steel in 2022-23, the gap between India’s exports and imports was narrow.
JSPL’s upcoming plant targets track Steel capacity addition to reducing India’s dependence on Steel imports. Mr. Bimlendra Jha elaborated, “JSP is committed to supporting the Government’s initiatives of Gati Shakti Yojna, as part of the AtmaNirbhar Bharat Abhiyan by making available domestically produced import substitution products at competitive prices”.
About Jindal Steel and Power Ltd.: Delhi-based Jindal Steel and Power Limited is a part of the O.P. Jindal Group, and a major player in the steel industry. JSPL has manufacturing facilities at Raigarh in Chhattisgarh, Angul in Orissa and Patratu in Jharkhand. For the 2021-22 financial year, the company clocked a revenue of Rs. 56,921 crore.
