The Union government has completed the initial
assessment of Rashtriya Ispat Nigam's detailed project report, it is learnt.
The final specifications are currently under
preparation and the company has sought environment clearances.
The project costing around Rs.8,250 crore
involves expansion of steel capacity from 3.5 million tpa to 7 million tpa is
scheduled to be completed by March 2008.
Around Rs.5,500 crore will be sourced from
internal accruals and the rest through borrowings. The debt component would
include both Indian rupee borrowings and external commercial borrowings. The
company will also consider suppliers' credit in the range of Rs.1,500 crore to
Rs.2,000 crore on equipment.
In another development, RINL (the corporate
avatar of Vizag Steel Plant) is considering setting up joint ventures for
sourcing coal. The company does not have its own coal mines and is hence
dependent on purchases. The steel major is reportedly evaluating possibilities
of setting up joint ventures in China or Australia.
Also See:
VSP
expansion attracts foreign banks (18-Mar-05)