The Steel Executive’s Federation of India (SEFI) and RINL’s Steel Executive Association have requested that the Center’s privatization plan for Visakhapatnam Steel Mill (VSP) be dropped and that RINL, Steel Authority of India Limited (SAIL), Neelanchal Ispat Nigam Limited, NMDC and Mecon under the Ministry of Steel will be merged into a huge conglomerate.
Both bodies decided at a meeting in New Delhi on Monday to submit a representation to the government in order to achieve the continuation of the steel industry as a strategic sector.
“By merging the units under one roof, the SAIL, the steelworks will become a huge steel conglomerate with a production capacity of around 30 MPTA. If all steel mills are in expansion mode, total production could rise to 50 MPTA by 2030, which would make the steel conglomerate one of the largest in the world. It would even exceed the POSCO’s capacity of 40 MPTA, ”said SEA Vice President KVD Prasad.
Both SEFI and SEA members believe that the advantages of the RINL can offset the disadvantages of the SAIL and vice versa.
Marpu Sarat from SEA spoke about the benefits of the RINL that can be beneficial to SAIL and other steel mills, saying the RINL is the only integrated steel mill on land and its sea connectivity can be used by others for import and export.
Trapped mines
“In addition, we have a very strong marketing network in South India that can help SAIL immensely. The RINL has a huge land bank that can be used to expand and change the product mix that the SAIL plants do not have, ”stressed Prasad.
He said that without a mine in captivity, the cost of production of the RINL will increase and with the merger, the mines of SAIL and NMDC may transform the RINL’s fortunes.
Product mix
Because the RINL has a limited mix of products, its quality has gained worldwide recognition. With the merger, SAIL, with its huge product range, can turn the steel conglomerate into a force to be reckoned with on the world market, said Prasad.
The center has so far invested around 4,500 crore in the RINL, but the steel mill has returned over 45,000 crore in taxes and dividends. A city has developed wherever a steelworks for power supplies has been built. Even in the case of RINL, the per capita rate in the Gajuwaka region is the highest in the state, he said. “We urge the government to take a holistic view of this,” said Prasad.