Tata Steel will focus on augmenting iron ore production from 30 million tonnes per annum to 45 MTPA in the next five years, a company official said on Saturday. The total iron ore production from the steelmaker’s captive mines in Noamundi in Jharkhand and in Katamati, Joda and Khondbond blocks in Odisha, is about 30 MTPA, he said.
“In the next five years, we will focus on increasing iron ore production capacity to 45 MTPA in line with the expansion in the steelmaking facilities in the country,” company's ore, mines and quarries (OMQ) division general manager Atul Kumar Bhatnagar said. He, however, claimed that the present capacity is sufficient to meet the iron ore requirement in Tata Steel's manufacturing facilities in Jharkhand's Jamshedpur and Odisha's Kalinganagar. The steelmaker had started its iron ore mining operation at Noamundi in 1925 and the mine will turn 100 in 2025, he said.
During the fifth National Conclave on Mines & Minerals in New Delhi on November 23, Noamundi iron ore mine was accorded the 'five-star rating' for three consecutive years from 2017-18 for sustainable development. Asked about the use of drones in the mining sector, Bhatnagar said it is being deployed for surveying and monitoring purposes.
As part of the sustainable development of the block, a solar power plant spread over 19.2 acres of mined-out land was installed in 2017 in Naomundi, he said, adding that the green cover has also been increased in the area.
