State-run Steel Authority of India Ltd (SAIL) on Wednesday announced commissioning of a Rs. 730-crore new sinter plant at its Bhilai facility as part of its Rs.17,265 crore modernisation plan.
The new facility to produce 3.708 MT sinter per annum was made operational by SAIL chairman, S.C. Verma in Bhilai, according to an official statement here. The modernisation and expansion programme would enhance the plant's production levels to 7.5 million tonnes per annum (MTPA) of hot metal from the current level of 5 MTPA with an investment of over Rs. 17,265 crore.
This is part of the total outlay of Rs. 72,000 crore for expansion of SAIL's hot metal capacity from 14.23 MTPA to 23.46 MTPA. The other facilities coming up at Bhilai include a new blast furnace, sinter machine, a coke oven battery, steel melting shop, universal rail mill and a bar and rod mill. The new eco-friendly sinter machine will meet the requirement of sinter for new blast furnace as well as the existing furnace. A sinter is a small, irregular nodule of iron mixed with small amounts of other minerals and is used for converting iron into steel. The next in line for commissioning at SAIL-Bhilai is the new coke oven battery and a blast furnace.
The mill has been designed to produce world class rails by universal rolling method and would enable SAIL to roll out single piece rails of 130 metres, the longest in the world.
