Bokaro: Bokaro Steel Plant (BSL) is looking to boost productivity after making impressive profits of Rs 1879 crores so far in the first quarter of the current financial year 2021-22. A project is being worked out by BSL to manufacture speciality steel. Out of the five major steel units of Steel Authority of India Limited (SAIL), BSL today is the most productive and profitable one.
BSL is yet to announce the new speciality product, whether it is CRNO or CRGO or anything else, but its dedicated team is hard at work to develop it.
On the occasion of Independence day, director incharge, Amarendu Prakash said “our research team is working for manufacturing of speciality steel. This will not only help BSL to churn more profit, but also move up in steel value chain”. Prakash pointed that production of speciality steel will also bag incentives from the government and helps in nation building.
Speciality steel these days are mostly imported in the country. It is value-added steel wherein normal finished steel is worked upon by way of coating, plating and heat treatment to convert it into high value-added steel that can be used in various strategic applications such as defence, space, power apart from automobile sector and others.
It is mentioned that recently Union Cabinet has approved the production-linked incentive (PLI) scheme for manufacturing speciality steel in the country with a budgetary outlay of ₹6,322 crore over a period of five years from 2023-24. The scheme is expected to bring in investments worth about ₹40,000 crore and result in a capacity addition of 25 million tonne (MT) for speciality steel.
Speciality steel has been chosen as the target segment because out of the production of 102 MT steel in India in 2020-21, only 18 MT value-added steel/speciality steel was produced in the country. Additionally, out of 6.7 MT of imports during the said year, about 4 MT was of specialty steel alone resulting in a foreign exchange outgo of about ₹30,000 crore. The scheme would generate employment for about 5.25 lakh people, including direct employment for 68,000 people, said sources.
The BSL management is confident and passionate for the manufacturing of speciality steel. It holds all resources, dedicated team and capacity required for the production of value-added steel. BSL has a proven track record. It overcomes from loss to a profit-making unit in two years’ time. Now it has a highest contribution in SAIL’s profit.
BSL which recorded profit of only Rs 48 crores in 2019-20 FY, has showed a remarkable growth by earning Rs 2251 crores profit before tax in 2020-21. Such profit figure is historic, said sources. Comparing to last financial year profit figure, the BSL registered a tremendous growth in first quarter of 2021-22 making profit of Rs 1879 crores.
