Paswan puts SAIL on turbo mode

Though the plans have to be ratified by the SAIL Board of Directors and can only serve as directions for future expansion, it is indicative of the aggression that has come to be associated with the steel industry today. The sector which was dormant not long ago is now being courted by global heavyweights and is privy to big ticket investments. While Korean steel maker POSCO is undertaking a Rs 52,000 crore integrated steel plant with a 12 million tonnes capacity, world8217;s largest steel producer Arcelor-Mittal have announced an investment of Rs 40,000 crore for a 10 mt plant in India.

SAIL currently produces 14.6 mt of steel and has been growing both in production and sales. During the third quarter the company registered a growth rate of 6.4 per cent in production and Paswan indicated healthy profitability in the current financial year. 8220;Profits of SAIL can only be disclosed after the consideration by the Board of Directors as per SEBI guidelines but I can vouch for the fact that the growth story is on,8221; he added.

The minister also said the story is not restricted to SAIL alone and other state-run steel entities have almost doubled their profitability in the last three fiscals. 8220;The combined profit before tax for these companies stood at Rs 11,569 crore in 2005-06 compared to around Rs 5,622 crore in 2003-04,8221; he said.

The ministry is also undertaking capacity expansion at the Rashtriya Ispat Nigam Ltd and has earmarked an amount of Rs 8,692 crore to take the annual production to 6.3 mt from the present 3 mt. The expansion is scheduled to be completed by October 2009. RINLs capacity would be further expanded to 18 mt by 2018 and the company8217;s board has also approved an additional investment of Rs 25,000 crore.