JSW starts up iron ore terminal at India’s Paradip port

The JSW group has commissioned a 18mn t/yr iron ore terminal at the state-run Paradip port in the eastern Indian state of Odisha.

Paradip is one of India's busiest iron ore export ports, shipping iron ore fines and pellet from mines in the key-producing states of Odisha and Chhattisgarh.

The port will have a loading rate of 100,000 t/d, which may reduce berthing delays. Such delays have increased over the past several months as low-grade fines and pellet exports have accelerated.

Most of Odisha's iron ore cargoes are shipped to China.

The JSW group, which operates India's second-largest steel producer JSW Steel, also owns the Dharamtar port on the west coast, which handles all of the 5mn t/yr Dolvi plant's raw material imports and part of its steel exports. JSW's Dolvi plant is also located on the west coast in Maharashtra state.

JSW Steel was India's largest iron ore importer in the 2017-18 and 2018-19 fiscal years that started on 1 April. The company is also among the three largest hot-rolled coil exporters in India.

By Prasenjit Bhattacharya

source: Argus Media