16th Dec 2005 07:00
Vedanta Resources PLC16 December 2005 16 December 2005 Vedanta Resources announces 500,000 tpa Aluminium project The Board of Vedanta Resources plc ("Vedanta") has approved a US$2.1 billiongreen-field 500,000 tpa aluminium smelter project together with an associated1,215 MW captive thermal power plant in Jharsuguda, Orissa in India (the"Jharsuguda project"). Upon completion, this will increase Vedanta's totalaluminium smelting capacity to 900,000 tpa, placing it among the largestintegrated producers of aluminium worldwide. The Jharsuguda project will repeatthe project framework and technology of the Korba smelter that was successfullycommissioned recently. The Jharsuguda project will comprise two pot lines each containing 288 cells. Itwill be implemented in two phases of 250,000 tpa each and is expected tocommence construction in June 2006. Construction of the first phase is expectedto complete in the second half of 2009 and the second phase is expected tocomplete by the end of 2010. The associated thermal power plant will totallycomprise nine units of 135 MW each, of which five units of 135 MW each will becommissioned as a part of the first phase. The commissioning of the power plantunits is being scheduled to meet the power requirement of the new Jharsugudasmelter and is based on the modular 135 MW configuration deployed successfullyat Korba. The experienced in-house project management team that implemented the Korbasmelter project on schedule will manage this project. Vedanta's green-field1-1.4 mtpa alumina refinery in Orissa is scheduled to be commissioned in early2007. This refinery would feed the alumina required for the new Jharsugudaaluminium smelter. The total investment in the Jharsuguda project is based on the green-fieldnature of the project and is estimated at US$2.1 billion, to be phased over fiveyears. This investment includes the cost of building the smelter, the associatedpower facilities and all necessary infrastructure including railway networks,water pipelines and a township for employees. The investment will be fundedthrough a combination of internal resources and external financing. "The Jharsuguda project is the next phase of our growth in becoming a milliontpa producer of aluminium. It further enhances our ability to produce aluminiumat costs that are in the lowest quartile of the industry cost-curve." said AnilAgarwal, Executive Chairman, Vedanta Resources plc. "India is a fast emergingand attractive resource destination and this project harnesses India's highquality wealth of mineral resources at low costs of development." For further information, please contact: Sumanth Cidambi [email protected] Director - Investor Relations Tel: +91 22 5646 1531Vedanta Resources plc Faeth Birch Tel: +44 20 7251 3801Robin WalkerFinsbury About Vedanta Resources plc Vedanta Resources plc is a London listed diversified metals and mining group.Its principal operations are located throughout India, with further operationsin Zambia and Australia. The major metals produced are aluminium, copper, zincand lead. For further information, please visit www.vedantaresources.com. Additional Information Vedanta Resources plc has already taken steps to harness the bauxite reserves inthe State of Orissa. Orissa is naturally endowed with one of the best bauxiteand coal reserves in the world. This makes it a strategic location for settingup an aluminium smelter along with the required power plant. Jharsuguda isstrategically located with good infrastructure and availability of adequatewater and coal. Disclaimer This press release contains "forward-looking statements" - that is, statementsrelated to future, not past, events. In this context, forward-looking statementsoften address our expected future business and financial performance, and oftencontain words such as "expects," "anticipates," "intends," "plans," "believes,""seeks," or "will." Forward-looking statements by their nature address mattersthat are, to different degrees, uncertain. For us, uncertainties arise from thebehaviour of financial and metals markets including the London Metal Exchange,fluctuations in interest and or exchange rates and metal prices; from futureintegration of acquired businesses; and from numerous other matters of national,regional and global scale, including those of a political, economic, business,competitive or regulatory nature. These uncertainties may cause our actualfuture results to be materially different that those expressed in ourforward-looking statements. We do not undertake to update our forward-lookingstatements. This information is provided by RNS The company news service from the London Stock ExchangeRelated Shares:
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