India’s largest iron ore miner hosted a Vendor Meet in Hyderabad to share the company’s 100 MTPA roadmap with vendors from across the country. NMDC presented its CAPEX plan of Rs 700 billion for the next five years towards augmenting production capacity, building evacuation infrastructure and transforming the digital ecosystem. The public sector company promised ease of doing business and in return solicited speed and quality of the highest order from the partners.

Top brass of NMDC – Amitava Mukherjee, CMD (Additional Charge); Shri V Suresh, Director (Commercial); Shri Vinay Kumar, Director (Technical) and senior officers interacted with the network of contractors, consultants and vendors.

Setting the context for the meet, Amitava Mukherjee said, “This is not business as usual, 100 million tonnes by 2030 is a priority effort for NMDC and a once in a lifetime opportunity towards building a global mining powerhouse. We are looking at a capital expenditure of approximately Rs 700 billion.” He insisted that “our partners in progress should take this early head start, make financial arrangements, build up their resource base, deliver on timelines, and bring nothing
but the best to NMDC.”

The NMDC team laid out in great detail the upcoming infrastructure and innovation projects of the company in three sessions focused on expansion, evacuation, digital intervention and implementation strategies during the meet, followed by interactions with the vendors.

Delivering the closing remarks, the Director (Technical) of NMDC, Shri Vinay Kumar said, “Our vendors have ensured consistent growth, making NMDC a formidable team! However, it must be told that the aspiration now is to achieve more in the next five years than what we have done in six decades. Collective effort for seamless execution is the only way to realise the goal of 100 million tonnes by 2030.”

NMDC’s target of 100 million tonnes by 2030 is inspired by the vision of the National Steel Policy to build raw material security and self-reliance in the iron and steel sector of India.

Steel Minister HD Kumaraswamy announced a Rs 200 billion expansion plan for the Bokaro Steel Plant in Jharkhand on Tuesday, aimed at increasing its production capacity from 5.25 million tonnes per annum (MTPA) to 7.55 MTPA. The move is a step toward fulfilling India’s goal of self-sufficiency in steel production as part of the Atmanirbhar Bharat initiative.

The ambitious plan will include the construction of a new 4,500 cubic meter blast furnace, along with facilities such as thin slab casting, direct rolling, a calcining plant, a stamp-charged coke oven battery, and an expanded sinter plant. This overhaul is expected to strengthen India’s steel industry, contributing significantly to the nation’s economic growth and aligning with Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s vision of a 300 MTPA steel industry by 2030.

The expansion is also set to generate significant employment opportunities, including 10,000 indirect jobs and 2,500 permanent positions in the region. Additionally, the plant is making strides in sustainability with the installation of 30 MW of floating solar power and 20 MW of land-based solar power generation.

This expansion reaffirms India’s commitment to technological advancement and self-reliance in steel production, further enhancing the sector’s capacity to meet future demands.

A JSW Steel group entity is planning to raise Rs 26 billion through a three-year zero-coupon bond to fund its Rs 39-billion acquisition of Thyssenkrupp Electrical Steel India from Germany’s Thyssenkrupp Group. The financing for the deal will include Rs 26 billion in debt and Rs 13 billion in equity.

The bond, set to be raised on January 24, carries an implied yield of 9.45 per cent. This fundraising is being carried out by Jsquare Electrical Steel Nashik (JESPL), a subsidiary of JSW JFE Electrical Steel, which was established in September 2024. JSW JFE Electrical Steel is a joint venture between JSW Steel and Japan’s JFE Steel, the latter being Japan’s second-largest steelmaker.

As part of the arrangement, both partners will contribute Rs 13 billion in equity to Jsquare and provide a board-approved letter of comfort to ensure that the company can meet its financial commitments related to the bond issuance, according to the bond’s terms.

Jsquare, currently without its own operations, was set up just four months ago. Following the acquisition, the joint venture plans to rebrand Thyssenkrupp Electrical Steel India to reflect the JSW and JFE brands.

The transaction will grant JSW Steel (JSWSL) an exclusive license from Thyssenkrupp to manufacture cold rolled grain oriented (CRGO) electrical steel in India, a capability limited to a select few steel producers globally. Additionally, Jsquare is expected to benefit from managerial, financial, and operational support from both JV partners, according to Care Ratings, which assigned an AA- Stable rating to the proposed non-convertible debentures (NCDs).

JSW Steel currently has a production capacity of 35.7 million tonnes per annum (MTPA), including 1.5 MTPA in the United States, while JFE Steel is a globally renowned steel manufacturer with a long-standing collaboration with JSW Steel.