BHUBANESWAR: Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi on Friday announced that JSW Group and South Korean steel major POSCO will jointly set up a mega steel plant in his home district of Keonjhar.
The New Indian Express was the first to report on the proposed steel manufacturing unit in Keonjhar in its October 31 edition.
Majhi revealed the plan three days after the two conglomerates inked a pact in the presence of JSW Group chairman Sajjan Jindal and POSCO chairman Chang In-hwa. The development would make Odisha one of the major steel producers in the world, he said.
“We conducted two roadshows at Delhi and Mumbai recently for inviting investors to the Utkarsh Odisha: Make-in-Odisha Conclave 2025 in January. I had discussed with both JSW Group and POSCO regarding a steel plant in the mineral-rich Keonjhar district. They had agreed and accordingly both the groups have signed an MoU to form a joint venture (JV),” the chief minister told reporters at Keonjhar.
The JV, the chief minister said, would set up a greenfield integrated steel plant with an initial capacity of 5 million tonne per annum (MTPA). “They would jointly set up the plant and have already mentioned it. The Keonjhar project is under process and Odisha will soon get another mega steel plant,” he said.
Beyond steel, the JV also aims at driving cooperation in battery materials and renewable energy. Since POSCO has set a benchmark in sustainable technologies and low-carbon products, the upcoming project is expected to focus on hydrogen reduction ironmaking and electric furnace-based low-carbon high-grade steel production.
As reported by TNIE, the state government has already identified two sites for the project. The 2,500-acre land parcel of Odisha Tea Plantation Ltd (OTPL) at the Taramakant area under Banspal block and 1,956-acre land area at Patna are being readied.
Keonjhar collector Vishal Singh said apart from the land parcels, a couple of other sites have also been surveyed to promote industrialisation in the district. Once the sites are selected, the district administration would facilitate everything required for faster land acquisition and other statutory clearances, he told this paper.
Meanwhile, a high-level delegation led by the CM would visit Singapore from November 16 to 21 as part of the Utkarsh Odisha overseas investors’ meet. Two more roadshows at Bengaluru and Hyderabad are also in the pipeline next month.
The domestic roadshows initially planned this month were deferred due to Jharkhand Assembly elections for which BJP has Majhi as a star campaigner of the party.