The Hindu : Ore stock position in VSP precarious

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Sunday, May 18, 2003

Southern States

Southern States - Andhra Pradesh

Ore stock position in VSP precarious

By Our Special Correspondent

VISAKHAPATNAM MAY 17. Holding barely three days stock of iron ore, the Visakhapatnam Steel Plant faces the prospect of cutting down its production in the coming days.

The VSP authorities are worried about the situation caused by the niggardly supplies from the mines of the National Mineral Development Corporation Limited. (Iron ore is being transported to the VSP in rail wagons from NMDC's mines in Bailadilla through the Kirandul-Kothavalasa line on the ghat section).

The NMDC had originally contracted to supply annually 2.2 million tonnes of ore. Over a period, the ore offtake has been reduced, and recently NMDC held out a guarantee of supplying 1.8 million tonnes per annum.Even this reduced quantum is not being maintained by NMDC, of late, according to sources.

For the first two months of the current fiscal, NMDC should have transported 2.27 lakh tonnes of iron ore to VSP, but the actual despatch for April and May works out to only 1.82 lakh tonnes.

With a deficit of 45,000 tonnes in the ore supply, VSP is hard-pressed to maintain production levels.

It is learnt that the VSP authorities have sent an SOS to the Union Ministry of Steel and Mines to set right the situation.

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