Karnataka Steel & Mineral Industry

[Krishnamoorthy K]

The cabinet has also given its nod to the development of Hagari port (Tadadi or Tadri port) at the cost of Rs 3,000 crore through PPP (public private partnership) model, he (Tourism minister G Janardhan Reddy) said. He welcomed the move by Mittal, NMDC, JSW groups' move to acquire land in Bellary for the establishment of steel plants. Steel plants at the total capacity of 33 million tons would be established in Bellary by the Mittal, JSW and other groups.

As minerals are not allowed to be transported to other parts as per the mining norms, many mining companies have shown interest in setting up steel plants in Bellary.

Source: TOI

33 million tons in Bellary district alone? The limit go upto around 50 million tons all over Karnataka.

[Krishnamoorthy K]

With steel majors flocking to Karnataka in droves bringing mega project proposals envisaging massive investments, the State is turning Bellary district a Steel City a la Jamshedpur, to roll the red carpet.

Incidentally, Bellary district houses India’s second largest steel plant JSW Steel Limited which boasts of a capacity of 7.8 million tonnes. Official sources told Deccan Herald that a blueprint to make Bellary district — Steel Manufacturing Hub has been put in place. Styled as Vijayanagar Area Development Authority (VADA), sources said a massive investment of Rs 80,000 crore is envisaged for the proposed project. The VADA vision, sources said, is to develop the area as India’s steel hub and key engine of economic growth with world class infrastructure and social facilities to enhancement of quality of life in and around Bellary district.

To benefit 43 villages

Sources said the project, which envisages regional economic prosperity of Rs 50,000 crore annually, will see development of 43 villages notified for the Steel City, with 2,00,000 beneficiaries. The master plan will see orderly and planned development of 582 sq km region in the district. The VADA plan was conceived, sources said, taking into consideration availability of rich iron ore deposits, presence of existing operating and expanding industrial units in the Bellary belt, for planned and integrated development of steel-driven industrial urban complex. Sources said consultants have been identified to convert VADA into India’s best industrial area for steel, mining, township and ancillaries.

The Vijayanagar Area Development Authority, sources said, will be engaged in planning and providing infrastructural support to industrial investments, besides associated urban and social infrastructure in the area.

Apart from acquisition and development of land, the authority, will spearhead setting up of social infrastructures like housing, townships, parks and centres of recreation while being engaged in creating investor friendly environment.

From speedy allotment of land, VADA, sources said, will boast of excellent road, water and rail connectivity given its proximity to VADA Port (Tadari Port). A slew of financial incentives and subsidies will be provided as stipulated by the State and Centre, and single window clearance facilitation for prospective investors, sources said. Incidentally, the government, through a Gazette, has notified Vijayanagara Development Area Authority comprising total area of 580.70 Sq Km (58070.12 hectares), covering 43 villages from Bellary, Hospet and Sandur taluks. Bellary district is renowned for its rich natural resources specially minerals in three talukas of Sandur, Hospet and Bellary.

The annual production of iron ore is over 2.75 to 4.5 million tonne. There are 23 units of large and medium scale industries with investment of Rs 447.76 crore. Besides Sathavahana Ispat Ltd, Kirloskar, other major industries include Mukund Steels, NMDC and Kalyani Steels.

Source: DHNS

[Krishnamoorthy K]

Major steel makers are facing inordinate delays in acquiring land in the east.

It’s Destination Karnataka for steel companies. Having faced inordinate delays in land acquisition in the traditional mineral belt of the east, the companies are now betting big on Karnataka.

Last month, the world’s largest steel maker, ArcelorMittal, sought approval from the Karnataka government for a six-million-tonne steel plant, four years after signing a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with the Jharkhand government for setting up a plant, which hasn’t happened. Earlier this month, Posco, the South Korean steel major, did a recce of the southern state and may look at setting up a 4-6 mt plant.

The proposed projects would be part of at least 35 mt capacity lined up for Karnataka, putting it close behind the mega projects of Jharkhand, Orissa and Chhattisgarh, though its iron ore reserves are half that of each of these states.

NMDC, Essar Steel and Tata Metaliks are looking at the Bellary-Hospet region of Karnataka. JSW Steel will more than double its capacity at Vijaynagar (Bellary) to 16 mt. The additional capacity across the state’s northern districts of Bagalkot, Bellary and Koppal would be in excess of 35 mt, while the iron ore reserves are around 1.2 billion tonnes, about 40 per cent short of what the projects would require.

Currently, around 42 mt of iron ore is mined, of which 30 mt is exported. JSW Steel consumes 12 mt of iron ore a year.

Karnataka has 10 per cent of the country’s haematite (high grade) iron ore resources, compared to 19 per cent in Chhattisgarh, 27 per cent in Jharkhand and 33 per cent in Orissa. Ironically, Karnataka has 73 per cent of total magnetite (low grade) iron ore resources, but in the ecologically and environmentally sensitive region of the Western Ghats.

Says Vinod Nowal, JSW Steel’s director and chief executive officer of the Vijaynagar works: “If the government wants to bring in investors, it will have to change the mining policy, ban exports and reserve the ore for value addition. Also, it should explore whether mining can be done in the Western Ghats.”

The state too had a plan to ban exports, said an investor, and hence the initiative to bring in investors. “The Karnataka government has decided not to issue or renew mining leases if the ore is exported,” said the source. But there was no clarity on existing leases. Thirty million tonnes of exports would deplete about 75 per cent of the region’s reserves.

If the government fails to ban exports, then the resource crunch will hit the projects. The lessons learnt in the past four-five years have taught companies to exercise caution.

Harsh K Jha, managing director, Tata Metaliks, said, “We are not making investments till the state recommendssupply of iron ore.” This is understandable, given that JSW Steel has not been allocated mines in the past 15 years.

Tata Metaliks plans to set up a 3-5 mt plant and moved to Karnataka after facing delays in land acquisition in West Bengal.

The other problem that could impact steel projects was water. “The only source of water is Almati. It’s unlikely to be able to cater to so many plants,” said a source.

However, the silver lining is that unlike their experience in other states, the companies are confident that land will not be a problem. The state government is following the model prescribed in the proposed Land Bill for some projects. The companies will have to get consent from 75 per cent of the land losers and the government would step in for the balance.

After waiting for years in other states, the industry is hoping that Karnataka too does not land in the MoU heap, where projects remain only on paper.

Source: BS

[engineer.akash]

Water is the main necessity for the steel plants,whether our Almattii dam is capable of serving the plants is a big question.There is no guarantee on the water supply.Power shortage is the second big thing & our state is in dire crisis.

Only now power plants have been approved on a major scale in the North east Karnataka.It may take some 4 years for the power plants to get operational,Steel plants also need nearly 5+ years to be setup and start production so time is there to address the power shortage.

Something must be done to ensure interruption free water supply.

Karnataka can change its policy on banning the export but however in no way it will allow mining in western ghats.

[Krishnamoorthy K]

BANGALORE: The Karnataka government has approved steel major Posco’s steel plant with an investment of over 32,000 crore rupees, this comes in addition to the approval for Arcelor-Mittal’s 30000 crore rupee project and the state government expects to sign these agreements by June 2010.

Two gas pipeline projects which were also cleared include Reliance owned Relogistics which has come forward to lay the gas pipeline between Chennai-Bangalore and Mangalore. Also Gail will be laying the gas pipeline from Dhabol to Belgaum and Bangalore.

Petroleum major Shell will set up their R & D Centre in Bangalore and Zuari Fertilizers will set up their urea plant in Belgaum.

IT majors Wipro and Tata Elxsi will expand their facilities near the Bangalore International Airport.

More than 70% of these new investments will be made in North Karnataka which will boost economic activity in that region. Posco and Arcelor Mittal are currently surveying the feasibility of the project in the state and the government is leaving no stone unturned to ensure these big ticket investments don’t go away.

Source: UTV

[engineer.akash]

Bellary will be a steel hub: Janardhan Reddy

Express News Service
First Published : 05 Jan 2010 04:08:00 AM IST
Last Updated : 05 Jan 2010 07:13:24 AM IST

BELLARY: Bellary would become a future steel hub, said District In-Charge Minister G Janardhan Reddy on Monday inaugurating a ACC cement plant at Kuditini.

He said that world players in the sector such as Tata and ArcelorMittal have shown interest in setting up steel plants in the district. In view of the government’s continued assistance to set up new industries, Bellary would become a leading industrial centre in the state, he said. Managing Director of ACC Ltd Sumit Banerjee spoke on the occasion. MLC Mrityunjaya Jinaga, president of the Bellary Urban Development Authority Gurulingana Gowda, Mayor K Basavaraj and others were present.

http://www.expressbuzz.com/edition/s...2TGM5XQ==&SEO=

My only apprehension is from where will they get water for such huge projects???

[Krishnamoorthy K]

Originally Posted by OneGlobe

Source: http://www.deccanherald.com/content/...urn-steel.html

After IT, State may turn into steel capital of India
Bangalore, Jan 6, DHNS:

With cash flush global and domestic steel majors coming to Karnataka, the State, thanks to its pro-active investor-friendly policies, may soon upstage others in the country to turn into steel capital of India.


Spearheaded by world number one steel conglomerate ArcelorMittal, world’s fourth largest steel producer Korean chaebol’s Posco India Private Limited, nearly 11 high profile steel proposals received ‘in principle’ clearance on Tuesday.

While Arcelor Mittal India Limited, yet to zero in on its site and has conducted recce of Bagalkot, Bijapur and Bellary belt, for its six million tonne per annum plant, will bring in whopping Rs 30,000 crore investments generating 10,000 jobs once its goes on stream.

Company officials said the integrated steel, pig iron and pellets plant has proposed a 750 mw captive power plant, sought 4,000 acre of land, 360 metric tonne of iron ore for its ambitious project.

Meanwhile, it is learnt that Steel tycoon Lakshmi N Mittal is likely to meet Chief Minister B S Yeddyurappa in New Delhi to announce ArcelorMittal’s project. Company sources told Deccan Herald that the project will be funded through internal accruals. Likewise, Posco India Pvt Ltd, which plans to put up its six million tonne per annum finex steel plant with 400 mw captive power generation at Bellary, will bring in investment of Rs 32,336 crore creating over 20,000 jobs.

Pointing out that their intention currently is exploratory in nature company officials told Deccan Herald that they are focussing on the 12 MTPA green field steel plant near Paradip, Jagatsinghpur District, in Orissa with investment of US$12 billion. Stating they would set up their Karnataka project in two phases, sources said it was incumbent on few conditions being met.

Slew of proposals

Similarly, domestic diversified leader in lighting and steel pipes business Surya Roshni Limited is putting up a 5 MTPA steel plant — styled as Surya Vijayanagar Steels & Power Limited, and may zero in on VADA Region in Bellary or Bagalkot, pumping Rs 20,000 crore and generating employment of 10,000. Besides these biggies, Kolkata-based Adhunik Metaliks Limited has proposed Rs 5,568 crore integrated steel plant in Raichur, with 2.2 MTPA capacity resulting in employment for 2,187.

Other big ticket proposals include Bangalore-based companies like VIC Steels Pvt Ltd’s Rs 6,515 crore 2MTPA integrated steel plant at Torangallu Village in Hospet, Bellary creating 4,000 jobs; VSL Mining Company Ltd 1 MTPA plant in Bellary costing Rs 2,510 crore envisaging creation of 724 jobs. Mineral Enterprises Ltd’s 0.6 MTPA integrated steel plant in Hassan at a cost of Rs 1,993 crore generating 870 jobs. PMB Metaliks’ Rs 1,400 crore 0.50 MTPA integrated steel plant in Tumkur resulting in 1,600 jobs. Krishi Technologies’ mini integrated steel plant in Tumkur with investment of Rs 135 crore to create 2,000 jobs.

Bellary-based RBSSN Ferrous Industries Pvt Ltd’s 0.6 MTPA iron oxide pellets plant at Vardapur in Bellary at a capex of Rs 266.8 crore generating 160 jobs. New Delhi-based Bhadrashree Steel & Power Ltd’s Rs 146.83 crore 2x100 tonnes per day sponge iron plant at Kunikere Village in Koppal district and see jobs for 425. Official sources said once formal MoUs are inked in June during Global Investors’ Meet it will be full speed towards fruition of the intentions.

Good news for NE Karnataka. Now, government has to seriously focus on improving road infrastructure along with rail. Bellary, Gulbarga airport are also important. Hope that farmers issue will be solved amicably.

[Krishnamoorthy K]

In what appears to be an undisguised means to woo global steel magnate ArcelorMittal chairman Laxmi N Mittal, the Karnataka Government has notified 300 hectares of mining area in Bellary district.

The State Government’s decision is clearly aimed at rolling out the red carpet to Mittal and a signal that ArcelorMittal must now quickly take steps to set up the six million tonne per annum integrated steel plant with an investment of Rs 30,000 crore in an investor-friendly country. The Government’s move on issuing the notification ahead of crucial meeting with the steel baron is termed as the Chief Minister’s keenness to show his government’s commitment towards the project.

According to the latest gazette notification issued by the Government, land was notified at three locations in the Donimalai range in Sandur taluk of Bellary. This move comes in the wake of representatives of ArcelorMittal already having toured Bagalkot, Bijapur and Bellary to identify a location for their proposed steel plant. The steel baron has sought large tracts of mining area required to produce the targeted steel.

The entire area is government land and is rich in iron ore deposits and land will be allotted to companies which wished to set up captive steels plants in Karnataka, State Heavy Industries Minister Murugesh Nirani told Deccan Herald here.

Mittal, who has met Yeddyurappa recently, is believed to have expressed satisfaction over the prospects for the new venture.

“There are a lot of assurances from the Karnataka Government and there is a clear commitment on its part. This is my first meeting with the Chief Minister. We are very impressed with the kind of support and co-operation we are receiving from them,“ Mittal told reporters here.

ArcelorMittal representatives have inspected two places in Karnataka – Kolhara in Basavana Bagewadi taluk of Bijapur district and Toranagallu in Bellary district – for setting up their proposed plant and the company is likely to finalise one of them soon.

As there is no government land available at these two places, the Government promised to allot 4,000 acres of private land, mostly farmland, as the site for the proposed plant.

“The government will provide best prices to farmers in consultation with company officials and the compensation will be higher than the market rate” Nirani said. ArcelorMittal has also promised to provide job to one person from each of the displaced families. However, there was no problem of rehabilitation in Kolhara and Toranagallu as no human settlement exists there.

Besides land, the Yeddyurappa government is also willing to provide ArcelorMittal 40 MGD water which will be drawn either from Alamatti or Tungabhdara reservoir in accordance with the demands of the company wishes to set up a captive power plant with a capacity of 750 MW.

Yeddyurappa, who held talks with Mittal on Thursday, promised to clear the project in 90 days of its submission. After the meeting, the Chief Minister told reporters that “providing land for the project will not be a problem as the people of the state have already agreed to it.”

Mittal, whose ArcelorMittal controls over 10 per cent of global steel production, said good progress would be made in the next two months. “After that we will decide on signing of the MoU”.

Source: DHNS


Lakshmi for Karnataka

Chief minister Yeddyurappa, however, said problems such as land acquisition would be dealt with by the new rehabilitation policy. “Land will be valued at more than market price, we will only acquire land with consent, and at least one member of each oustee family will be provided employment.”

Yeddyurappa said Mittal would be promoting 20-30 companies downstream, as part of the steel project. “We have cleared the project on January 5th and two sites have got a preliminary nod by the company. These sites are Hospet in Bellary district and a site in Bijapur district,” he added.

Mittal, however, refused to commit to the Karnataka project, apparently disheartened by his experience in other projects in other states. Referring to his plans in Karnataka, he said: “This is a work in progress. We have received good co-operation from them. This is my first meeting with the chief ministers and if this continues then we can have an MoU in two months.”

Mittal has also been invited as chief guest for the state government-sponsored Global Investors Meet to be held in June this year.

LNM says India hasn't been able to handle surge in big investments

[engineer.akash]

Gold mineral found in many districts of Karnataka

BANGALORE, January 7, 2010: With prices of the yellow metal skyrocketing much so often, the State owned Hutti Gold Mines Company Ltd (HGML), the only gold extraction company in the country, has discovered availability of gold in Davangere, Tumkur, Gulbarga, Chitrdurga Shimoga and Dharwad districts.

The company is contemplating to sign joint ventures with National Mineral Development Corporation, Indo-Australian Company, Australian firm Cluff, and Deccan Mines to commence mining in districts where gold minerals are found. Now, gold mining is confined only to Hutti in Raichur district of Karnataka.

With just two months to complete the current financial year, it has set a target of producing 2,578 kg gold in 2009-10, with an average 4.11 gram of gold per tonne of ore. The company has produced 2420.33 kg gold in 2008-09.

The HGML has decided to invest Rs. 352.11 crore in the next five yeas on various expansion plans. The company, which is producing 7 to 8 kg of gold daily, has set a target to earn net profit of Rs. 98.21 crore in the current fiscal year against Rs. 93.05 crore in 2008-09. The companys total turnover in 2009-10 is expected to reach Rs. 319.78 crore against Rs. 316.02 crore in the previous year.

Minister for Excise M P Renukacharya, who is also the Chairman of the HGML, told reporters that the company has been extracting 4.11 gram of gold per tonne of ore against with an average recovery of 4.24 grams a tonne of ore in 2008-09.

The existing capacity of the ore milling unit is expected to be expanded to 2,000 tonnes per day when the ongoing work on the new milling plant (Snag Ball Mill) would be completed. As of now, about 90 per cent of the building work on the plant and the assembling of the milling plant have been completed.

A sum of Rs 14.85 crore would be spent on Ooti Gold Unit (open pit mine) development, Rs. 25 crore on ore milling unit.

The Minister said the HGML has earmarked Rs.12.09 crore to take up gold mining in Chitradurga, Davangere and Shimoga districts where the preliminary survey work has already been completed.

http://mangalorean.com/news.php?news...&newsid=163584

Yellow steel found that is a great news,Huti can now think of exporting again.

[engineer.akash]

Surya Vijayanagar plans steel plant in Karnataka

Nagesh Prabhu

Bangalore, Jan. 9

Surya Vijayanagar Steels and Power Ltd, a subsidiary of Surya Roshni, plans to invest Rs 20,000 crore to establish a five million tonnes per annum (mtpa) integrated steel plant, along with a 500 MW captive power plant in Bagalkot district in north Karnataka.

The group, which is in the steel and lighting business for the last 35 years, would set up the plant on 4,000 acres in Bagalkot district, which has several historical monuments. The company would identify the land and it would be acquired by the Karnataka Industrial Areas Development Board (KIADB), a State government undertaking. The exact location has not yet been finalised, according to officials in the Industries Department.

Jobs for 10,000

The project, which was cleared by the State High-Level Clearance Committee (SHLCC) chaired by the Chief Minister, Mr B.S. Yeddyurappa, would provide employment to 10,000 persons. The company has a turnover of Rs 1,700 crore. It will invest Rs 4,120 crore on land and building, Rs 13,880 crore on plant and machinery, Rs 1,000 crore on working capital margin and Rs 1,000 crore as contingency.

The company, which has applied for the mining lease, would mobilise Rs 6,700 crore from the promoters' contribution and raise term loans of Rs 13,300 crore.

The proposed steel plant would get 15 MGD water from the Ghatapraba and Krishna rivers subject to the approval of the Water Resources Department. The SHLCC has advised the promoters to adopt rain harvesting and to adopt water conservation facilities.

Till the establishment of the 500 MW power plant by the company, the Gulbarga Electricity Supply Company (GESCOM) would supply 90 MW of power. The officials in the Industries Department said that based on the request of the company, the extra concessions could be considered.

http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/...0952531700.htm

Water is a major hindrance.

[Krishnamoorthy K]

* No formula yet for arriving at price for land for ArecelorMittal project

The Karnataka Government will take the "consent value" based on consensus between farmers and the Government for arriving at the price for acquiring land for ArcelorMittal's Rs 30,000-crore steel project in the State.

A top Karnataka official told Business Line that the consent value will be decided by a committee headed by the Deputy Commissioner of the district where the project will be based.

No short-changing farmers

The Committee will consist of farmers' representatives and other Government officials.

"We will not short-change the farmers and care will be taken not to hurt their interests," Mr V. P. Baligar, State's Principal Secretary for Commerce and Industries, said.

The world's largest steel-maker has sought 4,000 acres for setting up a steel project in the State.

The Government is willing to extend to ArcelorMittal more tax concessions than those stated in the State's industrial policy. But sources said the steel-maker has not approached the State Government for more concessions.

Mr Baligar said there is enough dry land in Bellary and Bijapur, the districts shortlisted for setting up the project. He said the Government does not have a fixed formula for arriving at the price for buying land from farmers.

"We will go by consensus on this issue," he said.

ArecelorMittal is expected to decide on the site by the end of this month, Mr Baligar said.

The delay in land acquisition has been a major hurdle for the world's largest steel maker for setting up its $20-billion steel projects in Orissa and Jharkhand.

Once ArcelorMittal selects the site for setting up the 6-million-tonne steel project, the Government will fast-track the approval process, Mr Baligar said.

All the approvals will be given within 90 days as promised by the Chief Minister, Mr B.S. Yeddyurappa, to ArcelorMittal's Chairman, Mr Lakshmi Mittal. The land acquisition might take some more time. The MoU for the project will be signed during the Global Investors' Meet in June in Bangalore.

Sources in the Government said ArcelorMittal's officials have carried out technical evaluation at Kudithini village, 25 km from Bellary, and at Mulwad village in Bijapur - the two possible sites for the project.

Resources

While Bellary is rich in iron ore, Bijapur has enough water resources as the Almatti Dam is located there. Kudithini is also close to the 500-MW Bellary power project.

The State Government is also grappling with some of the land acquisition issues concerning an airport and a power project.

Sources in the Government said the land acquisition for setting up a greenfield airport on 900 acres in Bellary has run into hurdles because some farmers are not willing to part with their fertile land and have apparently filed a case in the district court against the acquisition. They have asked the Government to drop the project itself or set up the airport on dry land.

In Bijapur, some farmers have accused the Government of not honouring its commitment of giving double the market rate for their land for a power project.

Source: The Hindu Business Line

[Krishnamoorthy K]

KOLKATA: Arcelor Mittal is hoping to finalise a site for its proposed 6-million tonne (mt) steel project in Karnataka shortly as the company is
tipped to ink a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with the Karnataka government in three months.

The company executives are learnt to have shortlised a few sites for its Rs 30,000-crore ($6.6-billion ) project after visiting potential locations in Bellary, Bagalkot and Bijapur districts.

Bellary, incidentally, houses Karnataka’s iron ore reserves, a key steelmaking input. “At present , technical feasibility studies are being undertaken on these shortlited sites. Based on the report, the company hopes to firm up the location in the next 2-to-3 months,” a company source familiar with the matter said.

“The key to site selection would be accessibility of raw material and water. Hence any potental site in and around the Almatti dam is likely to find favour,” the source added.

ArcelorMittal, it is learnt, is satisfied with the swift progress in Karnataka. “Between November and now, we have moved quite a distance with regard to our plans in Karnataka. Within the company, the internal feeling is that ArcelorMittal may break ground in Karnataka much earlier than in Orissa and Jharkhand ,” the source pointed out.

An official close to the developments conceded that it was quite uncharacteristic of Mr Mittal to give vent to his disappointment. He is committed to setting up steel projects in India. But his frustration stems from the inordinate delays to the proposed $22-billion worth projects in Jharkhand and Orissa. Which is why, he is now pinning hopes on Karnataka.

The systems and procedures with regard to infrastructure in the state are encouraging and the Karnataka government too has reacted fast to the company’s proposal.

For instance, ArcelorMittal will require 4,000 acres for its project. The state’s nodal agency for infrastructure development, Karnataka Industrial Areas Development Board (KIADB), will acquire the land on behalf of the company, which is in contrast to the situation in Jharkhand where the company is facing stiff resistance over the land acquisition.

Sourcce: ET

[Kewl Batty]

Originally Posted by engineer.akash

http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/...0952531700.htm

Water is a major hindrance.

Water wont be a major hindrance. Why can't they establish Sea water desalination plants along west coast like chennai is doing now.

Going by their investements like 30,000 crores, sea water desalination plant wont cost more than 1,000 crores and can supply 100MLD. They should not exploit rivers and river belts.

Govt. should make it compulsory for these steel plants to establish desal plants. This is the least they can do for the people of Karnataka.

[engineer.akash]

Originally Posted by Kewl Batty

Water wont be a major hindrance. Why can't they establish Sea water desalination plants along west coast like chennai is doing now.

Going by their investements like 30,000 crores, sea water desalination plant wont cost more than 1,000 crores and can supply 100MLD. They should not exploit rivers and river belts.

Govt. should make it compulsory for these steel plants to establish desal plants. This is the least they can do for the people of Karnataka.

First of all Kewl batty,Coastal Karnataka is bio diverse rich and densely forested/Western Ghats it is impossible to think of Industries there.

Iron ore rich belt extends from Bellary region to Bijapur area which are far away from the coast.

Second of all 90% of low grade iron ore in India is trapped in the forested region of coastal Karnataka.Which is impossible to extract that.

Mining depts are thinking of an alternative ways of extraction if need arises without disturbing the ecology I am not sure of how that can be done.Best left to the Mining Engineers/experts.

[Kewl Batty]

I see. I'm against deforestation. They shouldn't move the plants to coastal areas. But they can put the desal plants alone along the coast where ever possible and put pipelines for even 700km to reach the steel plants. Thats a huge task but worth it.

[Krishnamoorthy K]

Good suggestion Kewl Batty.

Atleast KIOCL steel plant proposed in Mangalore can use desalinated water. Even for other petroleum and chemical industries coming up in Mangalore SEZ they have the option of using desalinated water. For the time being MSEZ is planning to use treated waste water of the city.

[engineer.akash]

Originally Posted by Krishnamoorthy K

Good suggestion Kewl Batty.

Atleast KIOCL steel plant proposed in Mangalore can use desalinated water. Even for other petroleum and chemical industries coming up in Mangalore SEZ they have the option of using desalinated water. For the time being MSEZ is planning to use treated waste water of the city.

KIOCL steel plant in Mangalore.??? Krishnamoorthy I was unaware of that,so Mangalore apart from its chemical industries will play host to Steel industries.??? Great Mangalore keep going.

[Krishnamoorthy K]

First of all Karnataka state government has to allocate iron mines to KIOCL. The project is listed in first post of this thread.

[Krishnamoorthy K]

Bangalore: Karnataka Chief Minister BS Yeddyurappa on Monday set a three-month deadline to his officials to give all clearances to the proposed mega steel plant being planned by ArcelorMittal in Bagalkot with an investment of Rs 30,000 crore.

Speaking to reporters here today, Yeddyurappa said he discussed the project details today with Chief Secretary SV Ranganath and asked him to ensure that all the required clearances are granted within three months to the world's largest steel company.

The steel giant's chief Lakshmi N Mittal has himself appreciated the speed with which the state acted on approving the project when the two met in New Delhi last week, said Yeddyurappa.

"There are a lot of assurances from Karnataka, and there is also a clear commitment from them. We are very impressed with the kind of support and cooperation we are receiving from the state administration," Mittal had told the press after his meeting with Yeddyurappa.

ArcelorMittal had signed MoUs with Orissa and Jharkhand as early as 2005 for setting up identical 12mtpa plants in the two states involving Rs one lakh crore, but the projects are yet to take off due to land acquisition trouble, among others.

"Really not satisfied" was how Mittal had reacted when asked about the progress of the Jharkhand and Orissa projects.

Source: Zee News

So, Bagalakote will be Bhagyadakote and Ukkinakote of Karnataka Steel Corridor!

[engineer.akash]

Originally Posted by Krishnamoorthy K

Source: Zee News

So, Bagalakote will be Bhagyadakote and Ukkinakote of Karnataka Steel Corridor!

Krishnamoorthy, when did Arcelor zero in on Bagalkote??They were shown land at Kuduthini in Bellary and Mulwad in Bijapur,when did they decide on Bagalkote and the company officials said it will take them three months to decide as the company is still evaluating and analysing the feasibility of the project.