Undecided whether to privatize or reinvest in and revive Visvesvaraya Iron and Steel Limited (VISL), a subsidiary of state-owned Steel Authority of India Limited (SAIL), India’s Ministry of Steel will set up a committee to prepare a roadmap for the steel mill, government officials said on Thursday, March 29.
The committee will be mandated to study the present situation and operations of VISL and make recommendations on the viability of reviving the plant through fresh investment and based on this the ministry would take a decision on fate of the plant, the officials added.
Meanwhile, sources said that any final decision on VISL would also have a political fallout considering that the southern Indian state of Karnataka where the plant is located will be holding local elections in May this year and privatization is always a politically risky decision for any political party.
According to government officials, SAIL in a study few years ago concluded that VISL would require a fresh infusion of funds to the tune of $492 million for complete modernization to achieve a financial turnover.
VISL with its plant at Bhadravati, Karnataka, is a producer of billets, rounds, special steel and pig iron.
It may be noted that India's steel ministry has already invited bids from strategic investors for its disinvestment from the ailing Salem Steel Plant, another subsidiary of SAIL.