With approval by the State Government for capacity expansion of its Angul steelmaking unit, the Jindal Steel & Power Ltd (JSPL) is set to become the largest investor in Odisha’s steel sector. “In the next 10 years, JSPL will invest more than 1 lakh crore rupees and create huge employment opportunities in the State,” said JSPL chairman Naveen Jindal in a twitter message, thanking Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik for supporting the endeavour.

Recently, the State’s High Level Clearance Authority headed by the Chief Minister approved five investment proposals, including expansion of the JSPL’s Angul steel plant to produce 25.2 million tonnes per annum (MTPA). “Such decisions will go a long way in boosting industry confidence and propel our efforts towards building a prosperous Odisha and a self-reliant India,” said Jindal in his message. The present capacity of the JSPL Angul plant is 6 MTPA, which is the largest in Odisha. With the capacity expansion, the unit would be the largest single-location steel plant capacity in the world.

The plant with an investment of over  Rs one lakh crore is expected to create additional about 20,000 direct job opportunities and more than 3,00,000 indirect employment opportunities in Odisha by the year 2030. The JSPL aims to make the expansion with addition of substantial green steel manufacturing capacity through hydrogen-based DRI and EAF routes.

The JSPL’s investment and operation in Odisha are also expected to generate economic activity to the tune of nearly Rs 1.5 lakh crore annually with the State exchequer earning potential revenues of around Rs 7,500 crore a year. The JSPL’s capacity expansion would also play a pivotal role in the Odisha Government’s vision to produce 100 MTPA steel in the State by 2030.