Siemens VAI and Shriram EPC Consortium to Construct Rolling Mill for SAIL at Durgapur

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Researched by Industrial Info Resources (Sugar Land, Texas)--A consortium comprising Siemens VAI Metals Technologies (Linz, Austria), a part of global electronics and engineering major Siemens AG (NYSE:SI) (Munich, Germany), and the Indian design, construction and project management company Shriram EPC Limited (BSE:532945) (Chennai, Tamil Nadu) has been awarded a contract to construct a new long product rolling mill in Durgapur, West Bengal.

The contract has been awarded by the state-owned Steel Authority of India Limited (BSE:500113) (SAIL) (New Delhi), which is the 16th-largest steel producer in the world and India's largest steelmaker, with an annual production of more than 13 million tons per year.

Production from the new rolling mill will consist of structural steel square and round bars; angle and channel sections; and beams with a maximum dimension of 300 millimeters. The mill is expected to begin production in the middle of 2012, and will have a capacity of 1 million tons per year. Output from the mill is expected to be targeted at the domestic market.

Within the consortium, Shriram will be responsible for construction activities and material procurement. Shriram also will supply auxiliary equipment, including the gas system, a water-treatment plant, a high-voltage supply and fire-protection equipment.

Siemens VAI will supply the mechanical equipment for the mill, including a 100-meter cooling table; a descaler for steel billets and blooms; 16 RedRing rolling stands; straightener units; and a cold-cutting area. The mill will be completed with systems used to stack, strap, weigh and label the products.

Siemens VAI also will supply all the electrical equipment for the mill, which includes both medium- and low-voltage transformers and a low-voltage distribution system. In addition, Siemens VAI will supply main and auxiliary drive motors and control centers; an uninterruptible power supply; and operator control and visualization systems. The mill also will be equipped with an intercom and closed-circuit television system. Siemens VAI will construct a mill workshop, where rollers and guides can be repaired and maintained.

The mill will be constructed as part of the SAIL Durgapur steel plant, which is about 160 kilometers from Kolkata, West Bengal. The plant was established in the late 1950s, with an initial capacity of 1 million tons per year. This was expanded in the 1970s to 1.6 million tons annually, and the plant was completely modernized in the beginning of the 1980s. Today, the plant has a wide product mix, including merchant products, structural steel and wheels and axles.

Financial details of the contract have yet to be announced.

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