SAIL's raw materials division (RMD) plans to almost double iron ore supply to Bhilai Steel Plant (BSP) to 1.5 million tonnes (mt) in the current fiscal.
According to the just-prepared annual plan for 2011-12,the RMD targets to meet BSP's increasing requirement in view of depleting reserves and the significant fall in quality of ores at the SAIL plant's captive mines in Chhattisgarh.
In 2010-11, SAIL's mines in Orissa and Jharkhand supplied to BSP 7.5 lakh tonnes of iron ore, which was way below 1.2 mt, planned for the year.
BSP, the flagship SAIL plant, has a RMD-independent mining operation and historically been self-sufficient in sourcing iron ore.
But the fast exhausting reserves at its mines at the Dalli-Rajhara ore complex has enabled RMD to lend greater support in sourcing partial supplies last year.
In 2009-10, BSP had sourced only 86,000 tonnes from RMD.
BSP sources confirmed that the unit would increasingly require RMD's support in procuring iron ore till its captive source fell short of meeting the demand of plant's furnaces.
BSP is trying to augment quality as well as quantity of resources through fresh investments.
“But the fruits of such investments would be available in the next couple of years. In view of the delays in the commissioning of its Rowghat iron ore mining project, BSP has to fall back upon RMD for the likely shortfall in the next couple of years at least,” a source said.
RMD, which is under direct control of Bokaro Steel Ltd (BSL), actually could not meet BSL's planned quantum of iron ore during the last fiscal. According to estimates, it supplied around 6.36 mt to BSL against the planned 7.25 mt for 2010-11.
For 2011-12, RMD has lowered the iron ore supply target to BSL to 6.75 mt.
RMD, which is in the midst fresh capacity expansion in three of its seven mining locations, has the primary responsibility of feeding three other SAIL plants also.
Targets for supplies to Durgapur, Rourkela and IISCO, Burnpur, however, remain more or less unchanged at the levels of last fiscal.
The other state-owned steel units or their arms, such as, Visvesvaraya Iron & Steel Ltd, Rastriya Ispat Nigam Ltd and Nilachal Ispat Ltd, according to the RMD's annual plan, are targeted to get a little more at 7.5 lakh tonnes (5 lakh tonnes).