Jindal Shadeed Iron & Steel (JSIS), a part of the Indian steel conglomerate OP Jindal Group, today inaugurated its newly expanded, state-of-the-art integrated steel complex at the Sohar Industrial Port, Oman.

The steel complex includes the GCC’s largest capacity electric arc furnace and rebar mill and would strengthen the domestic production capacity which is vital to the nation’s industrial growth.

The inauguration was held in the presence of Sayyid Taimur bin Asad Al Said from the royal family, who dedicated the steel complex to the sultanate in the presence of Naveen Jindal, chairman of Jindal Steel and Power.

According to a company statement, JSIS has made a capital investment of over $1 billion to expand the integrated steel complex. A 2.0-million-tonnes-per-annum (MTPA)-capacity steel melt shop (SMS) has already been commissioned in April 2014. The rebar mill, with a capacity of 1.4 MTPA, is the latest addition to the complex which was commissioned in January 2016.

The new complex will also play a pivotal role from being a supplier of hot briquetted iron (HBI) to an integrated steel maker in the region. The integrated nature of the plant operations will also contribute to in-country value (ICV) as product of one unit would be fed to the subsequent one till reaching finished steel, adding value at each stage. And in the process, it will create substantial employment opportunities for the locals, the statement added.

Commenting on the milestone, JSIS chief executive NA Ansari, said: “Despite a critical steel market, we have established ourselves as a formidable player in the region and have achieved several production milestones in 2015. The newly expanded facility will further facilitate in making Oman self-sufficient in meeting its domestic demands for rebar.

“Jindal Shadeed is the only company in GCC to export special quality billets to Europe for automotive, welding, cold head quality (CHQ) etc. applications, and special quality round billets to Saudi Arabia for seamless pipe manufacturing. The capacity of the plant has been selected on the basis of demand in the GCC and the neighbouring countries and, through this complex, Oman will help reduce the dependence of the GCC countries on imports from outside the region.” - TradeArabia News Service