Union Minister Pralhad Joshi lays foundation stone of Rs 483 cr crusher & conveyor system at NALCO

Union Coal and Mines Minister Pralhad Joshi on Tuesday laid the foundation stone of a Crusher and Conveyor System to be readied with an investment of Rs 483 crore at aluminium major NALCOs Mining & Refinery (M&R) Complex in Damanjodi in Odisha.

The system will cater to feed bauxite for the 5th stream of Alumina Refinery of the state-owned Navaratna company. The project is expected to be completed by April 2022 and would cost around Rs 483 crore.

We as a country aim to reach a $5 trillion economy by 2024 and I am sure NALCO will be a success story in this growth trajectory, Joshi said while interacting with employees of NALCO at M&R Complex in Damanjodi in Koraput district after laying the foundation stone.

The minister pointed out that Odisha has about 51 percent of bauxite, 25 percent of coal and 34 percent of iron ore resources of the country apart from 96 percent of chromite and 44 percent of manganese resources.

Our government has taken a number of steps to unlock the mining potential of mineral-rich states for the benefit of the country as well as the population residing in these areas, Joshi said. He also appreciated the state government for supporting mining activities in the region and highlighted that it will help in boosting the economy and bringing development to the state.

Earlier on Monday, the Union minister had chaired a review meeting of NALCO at Visakhapatnam and directed the senior officials of the company to ramp up production to achieve the annual target by paying due attention to safety. He expressed his happiness over NALCO becoming the worlds cheapest producer of bauxite & alumina for the 4th consecutive year.

He also praised NALCO for achieving capacity utilisation in the middle of challenges arising out of operating in a remote location. Joshi also visited Panchpatmali bauxite mine located in Koraput district, the largest bauxite mine in Asia, having a bauxite deposit of approximately 310 million tones, a company official said.

National Aluminium Company Limited (NALCO), a Navratna CPSE under Union Ministry of Mines, is one of the largest integrated bauxite-alumina-aluminium- power complex in Asia. The company is listed on Bombay Stock Exchange and National Stock Exchange.

The alumina refinery provides alumina to the companys smelter at Angul and exports the balance alumina to overseas markets through Visakhapatnam Port. The normative capacity of the alumina refinery is 21 lakh MT per annum through four independent streams.

The refinery receives bauxite from its own captive Panchpatmali Bauxite Mines of the Eastern Ghats located 16 km away through a special type of conveyor belt called Cable Belt. Coal is received from Mahanadi Coalfields Limited, Caustic Soda Lye is received through their port facilities and water from Kolab Reservoir which is located in Koraput District.