ArcelorMittal secures 1,827 acre for K8217;taka project

8220;A draft feasibility report for the contemplated steel plant is currently being prepared,and hydrological and environmental impact assessment studies have been initiated,8221; it added.

Along side the steel mill in Karnataka,ArcelorMittal has also proposed to build a 750-MW captive power plant.

Company chief L N Mittal had said earlier this month that ArcelorMittal is not counting on India in its business plans for the next few years largely due to regulatory issues.

8220;It is very difficult to say anything8230; When we will start the construction,when we will really make the progress. We are not even counting them in our business plans for the next few years,8221; L N Mittal had said while announcing the results for 2011 in a conference call.

The company8217;s plans to build two mega steel mills of 12 million tonne MT each in Jharkhand and Odisha are yet to see the light of the day.

The projects,including the steel plant in Karnataka,would entail an investment of USD 30 billion Rs 1,30,000 crore.

For the Jharkhand project,where it now intends to set up a 3 million tonne per annum MTPA capacity plant in the first phase,the company has sought 8220;adequate land8221; under the State Government Consent Award Scheme.

8220;Under this scheme,the state government will facilitate the legal transfer of land for a project after an investor has secured the landowner8217;s consent to the sale of the land,8221; it said.

In 2010,the company had to shift its proposed plant site in Jharkhand from Khunti-Gumla to Bokaro due to problems in land acquisition.

The company has also initiated the process to renew its MoU with the Odisha government,which expired in December.

So far,the company has not been able to make any progress there and is facing problems in acquiring land.