The project includes a new iron ore processing plant at Bacheli, a 15 million tonne per annum (MTPA) slurry pipeline and a 2 MTPA pellet plant at Nagarnar, the Ministry of Steel said in a press release.
The 135-km slurry pipeline will transport processed iron ore concentrate from Bacheli to Nagarnar, providing an alternative to road transport. It passes through 61 villages across the Bastar and Dantewada districts and will also reduce NMDC’s dependence on railways to transport processed ore.
The newly commissioned facilities will allow NMDC to process iron ore fines and slimes from its Bailadila mines into concentrate, which will subsequently be converted into pellets. The pellet plant uses Straight Grate Induration technology to produce pellets for steelmaking, the release said.
The commissioning expands NMDC’s presence across the iron ore value chain, covering mining, beneficiation, slurry transportation and pellet production. It will also allow the company to make greater use of iron ore fines and slimes generated from its Bailadila operations while adding a new value-added product to its portfolio.
“Today is a day of immense pride for everyone at NMDC. This has not been an easy project to execute. It involved the processing facilities, the actual slurry pipeline and the pellet plant,” NMDC Chairman and Managing Director Amitava Mukherjee said, calling the commissioning a “red-letter day” for the company.
The project is part of NMDC’s broader expansion and diversification strategy as the company works towards increasing its iron ore production capacity to 100 million tonnes in the long term.
