BHUBANESWAR: Minister for Steel and Mines Bibhuti Bhushan Jena on Thursday informed the Assembly that no assessment of iron ore and other mineral resources required by the proposed ArcelorMittal Nippon Steel (AM/NS) project in Kendrapara district has been done yet.
In a written reply to a question, the minister said as per the information received from director of mines and geology, Bhubaneswar, three iron ore mining blocks have been allocated to M/s ArcelorMittal Nippon Steel India Limited through auction.
The 228 hectares Thakurani iron ore block in Keonjhar district was leased out to the company for 50 years on June 27, 2020 while the 139 ha Ghoraburahani-Sagasahi mines in Sundargarh district was also leased out to the company for 50 years on March 26, 2021.
The minister said the third iron ore block spread over 92 ha at Allaghat in Sundargarh district is yet to be granted and executed though allocated to the company.
He said as per the information received from IPICOL, the proposal of ArcelorMittal Nippon Steel India Private Limited for setting up a 24 MTPA integrated steel plant in phases at Mahakalpada in Kendrapara district was approved in the 27th high level clearance authority (HLCA) meeting held on December 17, 2021, with a total investment of Rs 1,02,275 crore.
The land acquisition process for the project is currently under progress by IDCO, the minister said.