New Delhi: Drawing flak for project delays, the government has decided to set up a dedicated forum to clear bottlenecks such as coal linkages and environmental and defence clearances that are major holdups. Top government officials told TOI that after the meeting of the Prime Minister’s Council on Trade and Industry last month, the department of industrial policy and promotion (DIPP) has been asked to identify projects and remove bottlenecks in consultation with other departments and ministries.

State-owned trading giant MMTC has inked pacts with Japanese and South Korean steel companies including Posco, to supply 2.8 million tonnes of iron ore annually for a period of three years.

"We have signed iron ore supply contracts with five Japanese firms and one South Korean company for a period of three years. The exports are expected to start from July this year,"

The company has so far got 500 acres while the govt claims to have acquired 2,000 acres
South Korean steel major Posco and Odisha government have agreed to set up an 8 million tonne per annum (mtpa) steel plant near Paradeep in Odisha in two phases, downsizing it from the earlier plan of 12 mtpa. The company is also willing to settle for less land – 2,700 acres instead of 4,004 acres – to set up its plant.

Bhubaneswar: The Odisha government has sought a fresh detailed project report from Posco India concerning its proposal to downsize the proposed 12-MTPA steel project near Paradip in Jagatsinghpur district as the chairman and managing director of the company is scheduled to meet chief minister Naveen Patnaik on Wednesday.

Posco India Chairman-cum-Managing Director YW Yoon on Wednesday asserted that despite delay in the transfer of required land, there was no question of downsising or reducing the project cost of the proposed 12 mtpa mega steel mill to be set up near Paradip.

BHUBANESWAR: Posco India CMD Yong-Won Yoon on Wednesday said that the company will set up 8 million tonne capacity steel plant near Paradip in Jagatsinghpur district with the available land and expand whenever the total requirement of 4004 acres are transferred to it. The original plan of 12 mt capacity plant is still there, but the company has changed it to three modules of 4 mt each, Yoon told mediapersons after a two-hour meeting with Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik and officials.

Posco India on Wednesday pressed for handing over of 2,700 acres of land to the company for start of construction of its much hyped project in the state.

The company also scotched all speculation about downsizing the project due to constraints in land acquisition. The speculation had gained ground after the South Korean ambassador, Kim Joong-Keun, who visited the state on May 2, said, Posco would a build a smaller size plant if there is problem in acquiring the full 4,004 acres for the 12 million tonne project.

In a move to reduce dependence on highly priced Australian coking coal, India will acquire a mine in Mongolia and also set up the first steel plant in the quality coal rich country.

The Indian delegation comprising of Chairman of Steel Authority of India (SAIL) C.S. Verma and U.P. Singh, Joint Secretary in the Ministry of Steel will go to Ulaanbaatar on Friday to sign a pact in this regard.

The Karnataka government is actively considering the possibility of changing the location for a proposed steel plant of Posco in north-central Gadag district; instead offer the South Korean major an alternative land elsewhere in the state. The move comes after the farmers of Halligudi village stiffly opposed plans to acquire their “fertile” land ahead of starting work on the project.