The flagship of the Kalyani Group of companies, Bharat Forge (Kolkata, India), has signed an agreement with the West Bengal Government to set up a 1-million-metric-ton-per-year steel plant in the State. It is also in talks with the State government to establish a manufacturing hub in the region.

The steel mill will produce steel bars and other steel components for industries like shipbuilding, power plants, railways, automobiles, cement and mining in the eastern part of the country. It will also make high-grade steel for the engineering and the automobile sectors. The plant will require the construction of a 500 MW power plant to supply power to the new complex, which is part of the investment.

Though land for the project has not yet been finalized, the company is looking at either Durgapur or areas adjacent to Salboni as likely locations. The project is expected to provide direct employment to about 3,000 people and indirect jobs to many more.

“Once the location for the project is identified, we will work towards its speedy realization,” said Amit Kalyani, executive director of Bharat Forge. The project is expected to go on-stream three years from the date of final plans and their approval.