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OMC mulling material supply pact with steel cos.

—Photo: Ashoke Chakraborty

Ajit Kumar Tripathy, Chief Secretary and chairman of the organising committee, addressing the media on a convention on clean and green technologies in Bhubaneswar on Monday. The convention will be inaugurated by Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik on July 15.

BHUBANESWAR: The Orissa Mining Corporation (OMC), the flagship State public sector unit, is exploring possibilities of entering into long-term raw material supply pact with steel companies who have entered into memorandum of understanding with the State Government.

Speaking on the sidelines of a press conference here on Monday, Steel and Mines Secretary Ashok Dalwai said under the pact OMC would supply raw materials like iron ore, manganese and chrome ore to various companies.

It would be a bipartite agreement in nature without involvement of logistic providers, Mr. Dalwai, who is also chairman of the OMC, said adding that 70 per cent priority would be given to those companies which were preparing to set up different projects for adding value to raw materials. Mr. Dalwai, however, said details such as duration and modes of supply were yet to be worked out.

The Steel and Mines Secretary was addressing the press conference along with State Chief Secretary Ajit Kumar Tripathy on convention on “Clean, Green and Sustainable Technologies in Iron and Steel Making” to be held here from July 15 to 17.

The State Government has signed MoU with 49 companies for setting up steel mills, of which 28 have gone into partial production, Mr. Tripathy said. “Global recession has seen the world crude steel output plummet from 1197.30 million tonnes in April, 2008 to 845.00 million tonnes in April 2009, a decline of 23 per cent.

On the contrary India has registered a growth of 8 per cent over this period,” the Chief Secretary said.

Of the 65 mt of steel being produced by India, Orissa contributed with 10 mt, which was quite significant amount, he said.

The top bureaucrat said Orissa was switching from agrarian economy to industrial economy and the transition period was critical for the State.

“The recession is expected to make a turnaround from the year 2009-10 and stabilize around 2013. This lag period of three to four years can be used by investors to commission their projects in alignment with the expected firm upswing from the year 2013,” Mr. Tripathy said.

It is envisaged that Orissa would alone produce an output of 90 mtpa.

“Both preventive and ameliorative interventions are essential for sustained mining and industrialization.

Clean and green technologies when adopted in manufacturing will reduce consumption of resources and energy and also reduce emission of green house gases,” organizers said.

Mr. Dalwai said recommendations emerging from the convention would be the State Government’s cornerstone to execute MoU for setting up plants without harming the environment.

The delegates represent sectors like iron and steel manufacturers, mining companies, research institutes, universities, equipment manufacturers and policymaking bodies.

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