New Delhi: State-owned NMDC Ltd has commissioned its 2 million tonne per annum (MTPA) pellet plant at Nagarnar in Chhattisgarh, as part of a Rs 5,427-crore integrated iron ore processing, slurry transportation and pelletisation project connecting its Bacheli mining operations with the company’s steel plant at Nagarnar.
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The integrated project comprises a new iron ore processing plant at Bacheli, a 15 MTPA slurry pipeline and the 2 MTPA pellet plant at Nagarnar. The 135-km slurry pipeline transports processed iron ore concentrate from Bacheli to Nagarnar, providing an alternative to road transportation.
The maiden production from the pellet plant was monitored live from NMDC’s headquarters by Chairman and Managing Director Amitava Mukherjee and senior company officials, as adverse weather conditions prevented the leadership team from travelling to the project site.
The facilities will enable NMDC to process iron ore fines and slimes generated from its Bailadila mines into concentrate and subsequently convert the concentrate into pellets. The pellet plant uses Straight Grate Induration technology for pellet production.
“Today is a day of immense pride for everyone at NMDC. This has not been an easy project to execute. It involved the processing facilities, the actual slurry pipeline and the pellet plant. But today is a red-letter day—a day we have been waiting for a long time. This is the day when our collective dream is coming true,” Mukherjee said.
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The commissioning strengthens NMDC’s presence across the iron ore value chain, covering mining, beneficiation, slurry transportation and pellet production. It also adds pellets as a value-added product to the company’s portfolio and enables greater utilisation of iron ore fines and slimes generated from its Bailadila operations.
The project is part of NMDC’s broader expansion and diversification strategy as the company works towards increasing its iron ore production capacity to 100 million tonnes in the long term.
The 135-km slurry pipeline passes through 61 villages in Bastar and Dantewada districts. It is designed to reduce the movement of processed ore by road, provide an alternative evacuation route and lower NMDC’s dependence on rail transportation while establishing a dedicated link between its Bacheli operations and Nagarnar.
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