12.7.12

Kobe, SAIL ink deal on Durgapur plant


State-owned steel maker SAIL inked a final pact with Japan’s Kobe Steel to set up a 500,000-tonne plant in West Bengal to produce a key steel making raw material.
The facility will see an investment of Rs 1,500 crore and would use Kobe’s specialised technology ITmK3 (iron making technology mark three) to produce nuggets to be shared equally by the partners for captive use.
The agreement was signed by SAIL chairman CS Verma and Kobe Steel president and CEO H Sato in Tokyo. Steel Minister Beni Prasad Verma, also in Tokyo, expressed hope that there would be more projects for the Indian steel industry with the help of Japanese technology.
ITmK3 technology has successfully replaced coal as an input material for iron making and is recognised for its low-energy consumption and environment friendliness. Kobe Steel is one of the prominent steel makers of Japan, which is the world’s second largest steel producing country. It is also one of the largest suppliers of alloy steels to Japanese automobile companies.
SAIL and Kobe Steel had earlier signed a pact on March 30, 2010, for conducting a joint feasibility study for exploring and commercialisation of ITmk3 technology developed by Kobe for production of iron nuggets used for steel production.

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