Industries Minister P.K. Kunhalikutty, on Sunday, inaugurated work on the steel rolling mill project of SAIL-SCL Kerala Limited- a joint venture of the Kerala government and the Steel Authority of India (SAIL) at the Steel complex at Kolathara. The Rolling Mill, being setup at a total project cost of Rs.65 crore, would produce TMT (Thermo-Mechanical Treatment) steel bars .
In his inaugural address, Mr. Kunhalikutty said the State government had already sanctioned its share of fund for the completion of the joint venture, which would be a boost for the entire industrial sector in Kerala.
He exuded confidence that the SAIL too would be able to release its share on time to support the venture.
The Minister expressed satisfaction over the growth of the small scale and large scale industrial sectors in Kerala. Delivering the presidential address, M.K. Raghavan, MP, said the Rolling Mill project work was given the green signal by the Union government after several years of lobbying by people’s representatives and employees’ unions.
Explaining the benefits of having a rolling mill, K.S. Srinivas, chairman of SAIL-SCL Kerala limited, said it would help to produce 65,000 tonne TMT steel bars a year.
“Of the total project cost, 30 percent will be mobilized jointly by the State government and the SAIL and the rest will be sanctioned as loan by the Canara Bank,” Mr. Srinivas added.
