Nithia Capital (Nithia) announces that Uttam Galva Metallics Limited (UGML) has successfully commissioned the Blast Furnace No 2 (BF2) at the Wardha Steel Complex located near Nagpur, Maharashtra.
BF2 has a capacity of 7,00,000 MT of hot metal per annum (0.7 mtpa), which will largely be utilised to supply the hot metal and pig iron requirements at the adjacent steelmaking facilities of Uttam Value Steels Limited (UVSL). This BF2 project commenced in 2015 and was halted due to financial constraints in 2018.
One of the primary objectives of Nithia upon acquisition of both UGML and UVSL in December 2020, was to complete this unfinished project within 18 months. This has now been achieved in time and on budget through discipline and teamwork, despite several challenges along the way. This additional capacity will supplement Blast Furnace No 1 (BF1) which has now been taken down for refurbishment and capacity enhancement, post which, UGML will have a hot metal production capacity of over 15,00,000 MT per annum (1.5 mtpa) – a 3.0X increase since the time of acquisition.
Commenting, Jai Saraf, Chairman of UGML & UVSL and Founder & CEO of Nithia Capital said, “This is a proud moment for us at Nithia and at Wardha Steel Complex, fulfilling a commitment made at the time of acquisition. This is not the culmination of our investment programme at the complex, but an important step towards realising our overall goal of making Wardha Steel Complex a 2.0 mtpa fully integrated primary steel producer.”
Birendrajee, President (Operations) at Wardha Steel Complex said, “This has been a challenging capital expenditure program to complete, however the project teams across the various organisations involved overcame these in a positive & collaborative manor. The increased blast furnace capacity will now enhance our production abilities, lead to better productivity, and lower our operating costs.”
Nithia and AB CarVal (formerly CarVal Investors) completed the acquisition of UGML and UVSL for in excess of ₹2,000 crore in December 2020 after securing the approval of the National Company Law Appellate Tribunal (NCLAT). Nithia Capital acquired the entities through their Singapore-based Joint Venture Holding Company, Wardha Steel Holdings Pte Ltd.
