The Visakhapatnam Steel Plant has passed through an eventful and challenging year in 2014, according to RINL Chairman and Managing Director P. Madhusudan.

He was addressing employees here on the Republic Day after hoisting the National Flag.

Madhusudan called for extraordinary efforts from all employees to move ahead with tenacity. He said for the RINL 2014 had been a very challenging and eventful year. Many new units such as wire rod mill-2, the second converter in steel melting shop, top recovery turbine, sinter heat waste recovery plant, the first of its kind in India, were put on stream, marking the completion of stage one of expansion.

He said the blast furnace one was blown in after modernisation and ERP system was put on stream for further improving the business processes & operations. A number of measures taken to improve the bottom line resulted in increase in profits by 52 per cent during the first nine months of the calendar year, he added.

He said that though the Hudhud cyclone severely impacted the operations, the crisis was overcome through grit and determination of employees and the plant was brought back on track in the shortest possible time.

sarma.rs@thehindu.co.in