Steel Minister visits Alloy Steel Plant, Durgapur

Steel Minister Chaudhary Birender Singh on Friday visited the Alloy Steel Plant (ASP) in Durgapur. After a review of the performance of ASP, the Minister said that ASP is now showing improved performance both in physical and financial terms. Chaudhary Birender Singh also said that the plant is geared up to make net profit from next year.

ASP has a diverse product portfolio of over 400 grades critical in end-use by strategic sectors like, defence, railways, automobiles, power plants, heavy engineering and manufacturing industries, including steel plants.ASP was set up in 1965 under Hindustan Steel Limited, now SAIL, to ensure India’s self-reliance in alloy and special steels production.

The Steel Minister also visited the Durgapur Steel Plant (DSP). He said DSP’s commensurate growth plan has been duly considered in tune with the National Steel Policy of making 300 MT steel by 2030-31, and SAIL’s plan to enhance steel production to 50 MT. He said SAIL needs to be more profitable and retain its leadership position in the market. Apart from the plant issues Chaudhary Birender Singh also spoke about development in the township and the necessity for providing better medical facilities at the DSP Main hospital.

Durgapur steel plant was set up in the late fifties with an initial production capacity of 1 million tonne per annum (MTPA) crude steel which was progressively increased to 1.8 MTPA during the last modernization in the nineties. DSP is currently implementing its Modernisation & Expansion Plan (Phase-I) with the main objectives of conversion of available semis into value added rolled products. The capacity of DSP will increase in hot metal to 2.40 MTPA, crude steel to 2.20 MTPA and saleable steel to 2.12 MTPA after completion of Phase -I.

Steel Minister Chaudhary Birender Singh visited the Salem Steel Plant yesterday and reviewed its performance. He discussed with officials the ways and means of making the plant profitable as it hasbeen a loss making plant for the last 10 years with around Rs 200 crores loss per year. Losses have been reduced this year and may come down by more than 20%.

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Chairman, SAIL and Joint Secretary, Steel accompanied the Minister during the visits to the three plants at Salem, Tamil Nadu and Durgapur, West Bengal.