Indian steel company Jindal Steel & Power (JSP) announced plans to set up a rail and heavy structure mill with a capacity of 1.2 million tonnes per annum (MTPA) at its Angul steel complex in Odisha.

Following the installation of the new rail factory at Angul, the total capacity for rail-making of Jindal Steel & Power will be 2.2MTPA.

The Indian steel manufacturer said that it has created specialty rails such as 1175 HT, Asymmetric Rails, R350HT, and 1080HH rails at its existing rail mill in Raigarh, Chattisgarh, which has a capacity of 1MTPA.

The rails are an import substitution product needed for supporting axle loads that are over 25MT. They are mainly utilized by high-speed corridors, metro rail corporations, as well as those involved in the Bullet Train project.

Jindal Steel & Power’s Raigarh rail mill is said to have been regularly providing 260m rails to Indian Railways, DFCCs, and other important projects of national significance. These long rails that have minimal welding are crucial elements in enhancing track safety and comfort, said the steelmaking company.

According to Jindal Steel and Power, its specialty rails of the 1080 HH grade are being used in nearly all Metro as well as the regional rapid transit system (RRTS) in India. These rails are also being used in special projects of National military and civil connectivity that have difficult terrains, like for instance the USBRL Project (J&K) and Sivok – Rangpo Project in West Bengal.

To aid in the construction of future-proof railway infrastructure across the country, Jindal Steel & Power has developed 60E1 1175 time-tested Heat Treated (HT) Rails that are suitable for high-speed and high axle load applications.

Indian Railways has launched efforts of modernizing the Indian railway track system to accommodate more than 25MT axle loads as well as up to 200km/h speed, noted the company.

Jindal Steel & Power is exporting its “Made in India” rails across the globe as well and is said to have supplied specialty rail blooms for European railways.

Bimlendra Jha — Jindal Steel & Power Managing Director said: “JSP is committed to supporting the Government’s initiatives of Gati Shakti Yojna, as part of the AtmaNirbhar Bharat Abhiyan by making available domestically produced import substitution products at competitive prices. JSP is proactively adding and augmenting further Rail manufacturing capacity to support the modernization of the Indian Rail network.

“Even though there is surplus Rail capacity in India, there are markets abroad we will be looking to feed as well after meeting India’s requirements.”

  Angul, AtmaNirbhar Bharat Abhiyan, Bimlendra Jha, Bullet Train Project, India, Indian Railways, Jindal Steel & Power, Odisha