The incessant rains since Monday last due to the depression in the Bay of Bengal have affected the production in the Vizag Steel Plant.
According to VSP sources, the plant is at present operating at 30-40 per cent of its capacity. Since its commissioning, the plant has not faced such a situation, the sources pointed out. Rains have badly affected the handling of coal and coking coal at Gangavaram Port for the past four to five days and coal supply has almost stopped.
The privately operated Gangavaram Port is located almost in the backyard of the steel plant and coal is taken to the plant through conveyor systems. Coking coal is imported from Australia for the plant.
The available coal is being judiciously used to keep the systems - coke oven, the SMS and the blast furnaces – going and the transfer of the coal from the stockyards to various units has become very difficult as the rains have turned it slurry.
The conveyors systems are not built to carry such slurry, the sources pointed out. Further, captive power generation has also been affected for want of coal supply.
