Tuwairqi Steel Mills’ first phase to be completed by December’

[LahoreEstate]

KARACHI: Tuwairqi Steel Mills Limited (TSML) first phase would be completed by end December 2009, Zaigham Adil Rizvi, Director (Projects), Tuwairqi Steel Mills Limited said.

Zaigham said that the DRI production worldwide has increased from 84.6 million tonnes in 2000, to over 132.9 million tonnes in 2008. “There is a consistent growth in the production of Direct reduced iron (DRI) over the years owing to environment-friendly production process and consistent quality of the product,” he said.

The plant, currently under-construction, spreads over an area of 220 acres at Bin Qasim Karachi and employs the world’s most advanced Direct Reduction of Iron technology of the MIDREX process owned by Kobe Steel of Japan. The first phase of the project that constitutes a DRI plant would produce 1.28 million tonnes of high-quality DRI and is targeted for completion in December, 2009.

“In the first phase of the project 100 percent equity has been put by TSML, however in second phase we need to have foreign investment,” Zaigham said.

He was of the view that currently Pakistan is among the countries that rely mostly on imports when it comes to heavy mechanical structures and engineering goods. “By producing high-quality steel within Pakistan we can manufacture such equipment locally by value addition with the help of downstream industries,” he concluded.

TSML is Pakistan’s first private sector integrated environment-friendly steel manufacturing project of Al Tuwairqi Holding.

Saleem H Mandviwalla, Minister of State/Chairman, Board of Investment (BoI) visited the project site at Bin Qasim.

In line with the vision of Al Tuwairqi Holding, the minister also emphasised the dire need and exigencies of backward and forward integration of this project. The proposal of Jet Furnace project from Germany, which is substantially cost-effective in terms of electrical energy consumption, specifically attracted the attention of the minister and he pointed that the government would fully support this effort of Al Tuwairqi to bring this

technology to Pakistan.

State minister said that $20 million facilitation has been given to Tuwairqi Steel Mills Limited. “Because of financial crunch across the world some of the banks included in (9 banks consortium) backed out from financing and financing remained shot around 40 percent”, he said.

He further said, “We, at BoI, are very sure that this project would definitely serve as the catalyst of industrial growth in Pakistan”. Expressing his satisfaction over the construction activities at site he said that, “it is a matter of great pride for us that Pakistan would be producing one of the most preferred raw materials for quality steel making - Direct Reduced Iron, upon the completion of the first phase of TSML.”

Saleem said that government is facilitating local as well as foreign investors for the industrial growth of the country besides offering them lucrative incentives. “We are expecting a significant increase in foreign investment during this fiscal year,” he maintained.

He also informed about the Special Economic Zone, which spreads over an area of 2500 acres in Dabeji, where renowned Japanese companies would commence industrial activities, which would strengthen the national economy and create a number of job opportunities.

http://www.dailytimes.com.pk/default.asp...2009_pg5_7