VISAKHAPATNAM: The Rashtriya Ispat Nigam Limited is hopeful of increasing its sale volume during the New Year with signs of good demand for its products for construction of world-class capital Amaravati and Indira Sagar Multipurpose (Polavaram) Project, after overcoming adverse market conditions in 2016.
With the completion of work on all the units of the 6.3-million tonne project, RINL management is stepping up efforts to commission the one-million tonne expansion under Rs.4,000-crore modernisation and capital repairs project by early 2018.
Up to November, it clocked a turnover of Rs.7,400 crore as against Rs.13,000 crore -- the target set by the Ministry of Steel for the financial year.
“We have launched an aggressive marketing strategy with special emphasis on cost cutting measures to absorb the burden cast on us due to increase in raw material prices and overhead costs,” RINL Chairman-cum-Managing Director P. Madhusudan told The Hindu in an exclusive interview on Saturday.
The RINL is now selling 3,000 to 4,000 tonnes per month in Vijayawada region due to spurt in housing construction in the region. The navratna company has long-term tie-up with L&T and Shapoorji, who have bagged major construction work in the people’s capital of Amaravati.
“I met Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu. He is positive about encouraging the use of our products for the State capital as well as the Polavaram project for which the Centre gave Rs.1,981 crore sometime ago,” Mr. Madhusudan said.
Operating profit
He said one significant achievement during 2016 was recording an operating profit in the third quarter. “We are also confident of the market firming up due to plans to launch work on mega constructions under Sagarmala, housing, industrial corridors, highway expansion and rural connectivity projects,” he said.
After a long gap, the RINL, corporate entity of the Visakhapatnam Steel Plant and the largest industry in Andhra Pradesh had incurred a net loss of Rs.1,421 crore during 2015-16 due to slump in economy and flooding of market with steel from China and Commonwealth of Independent States.
Mr. Madhusudan expressed confidence that they would reduce the net losses significantly in 2017 compared to last fiscal.
He said they were confident of clocking operating profit in the last quarter.
