JSW Steel Ltd shared news of its subsidiary, JSW Utkal Steel Ltd, gaining possession of 2677.80 acres of forest land in Rajnagar, Odisha. This land acquisition is for establishing a new Integrated Steel Plant and was approved by the Union Ministry of Environment & Forest and Climate Change in 2022, and reaffirmed in 2023.
Additionally, JSW Utkal Steel Ltd acquired 272.51 acres of non-forest land leased by the Odisha government. The total land needed for the project is 2950.31 acres, with 2677.80 acres being forest land. This project aims to set up a 13.2 million tonnes per annum (MTPA) integrated steel plant, incorporating cement and power plants. The estimated capital expenditure for this endeavour is around Rs. 65,000 crores.
The company plans to initiate work on the project in phases once the land is in its possession. This land, near the Paradip port in Odisha, was initially intended for Posco, a Korean company. Posco shelved its plans for a 12-mtpa steel plant due to local protests, delays in environmental clearance, and issues with land acquisition.