Ths Indian stae of Jharkhand has agreed to recognise state-owned SAIL as the owner of the iron-ore-rich Chiria mines.
The central government will try to persuade the Jharkhand government to renew mining leases in favour of SAIL in the next 100 days, Union steel minister Virbhadra Singh said here today.
“The state government has accepted that SAIL has acquired IISCO, which had been originally allotted the Chiria mines,” Singh said, while outlining the ministry’s 100-day agenda.
He said “the state government has issued orders for accepting the change in the ownership of the Chiria leases from IISCO to SAIL”.
Chiria is estimated to have around 2 billion tonnes of ore with an iron content of over 62 per cent. Companies such as JSW Steel, Arcelor Mittal and JSPL had been eyeing the mines to meet the iron ore needs of their proposed steel plants in the state.
SAIL wants an early renewal of the leases to be able to feed its proposed expanded capacity of 26.3 million tonnes by 2011-12.
Singh said state-owned NMDC Ltd would acquire a majority stake in Kudremukh Iron Ore Co Ltd. Kudremukh will also acquire a stake in NMDC in return. The “partnership acquisition” will ensure a continuous supply of iron ore to Kudremukh from NMDC.
The government will also set up joint venture companies between SAIL and Shipping Corporation of India, Manganese Ore (India) Ltd (MOIL) and SAIL, and MOIL and Rashtriya Ispat Nigam Ltd (RINL) for ferro alloy plants.
RINL has also been identified as the strategic partner for acquiring a controlling stake in the Bird group of companies.
Source: Calcutta Telegraph
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