SAIL Board Approves ₹31,000 Crore Capex for Bhilai Plant Expansion.

Steel Authority of India Ltd (SAIL) has given an in-principle approval for expanding the capacity of its flagship Bhilai Steel Plant (BSP) from 6.8 million tonnes per annum (MTPA) to 10.2 MTPA at an estimated investment of ₹31,000 crore, the government informed Parliament on Tuesday.

Bhupathi Raju Srinivasa, Minister of State for Steel, said in a written reply to a question in the Lok Sabha that the expansion project is expected to create direct and indirect employment opportunities during both the construction and operational phases.

The minister said the project will source major raw materials from SAIL’s captive mines as well as domestic and imported sources. The targeted completion timeline for the expansion project is 42 months.

Located in Bhilai, Chhattisgarh, the Bhilai Steel Plant is SAIL’s flagship integrated steel manufacturing facility and plays a key role in India’s infrastructure development.

The plant is the exclusive supplier of rails to Indian Railways and produces a wide range of rail products. Its Universal Rail Mill (URM) manufactures the world’s longest single-piece rails, measuring 130 metres. The plant also produces heavy structural steel products, including beams, along with plates and sheets.

The proposed expansion is aimed at enhancing BSP’s production capacity and strengthening SAIL’s steel manufacturing capabilities.