Gulf Construction Online - JSIS steeled for growth

Oman

The JSIS steel facility at Sohar ... state of the art.

JSIS steeled for growth

01 February 2017

Jindal Shadeed Iron and Steel (JSIS), part of Indian steel giant Jindal Steel and Power, last year commissioned the largest rebar mill in the Gulf and African region, significantly boosting Oman’s domestic production capacity and reducing dependence on imports for its construction sector.

The state-of-the-art 1.4 million tonnes per annum (MTPA) rebar mill, located in Sohar, catapults Jindal Shadeed amongst the top three integrated steelmakers in the Arabian Peninsula.

Naushad Ansari, CEO of JSIS, tells Gulf Construction: “The JSIS facility is poised to change the dynamics of the GCC’s steel market, which so far has remained dependent on imports. There is high potential of economic and infrastructural growth in the GCC, and we anticipate a surge in demand in the construction and road sectors.”

Considering the 15 MTPA rebar consumption in Oman, the production of 1.4 MTPA of rebar by Jindal Shadeed will add significant value to the country’s construction sector, he adds.

Ansari says the rebar mill is not only the first of its kind in terms of capacity, but it is also state of the art with a maximum rolling speed of 45 m per second for 8 mm bars. The mill is capable of producing high yield reinforcing bars in the eight to 40-mm size range. It was designed with the latest proven technology by Danieli, a reputed steel plant and rolling mill manufacturer in the world.

Ansari says: “From the planning stages to the cold trial stage, the operation is seamless and the rolling mill has been constructed in a manner to add a wire rod outlet in the future. A hot link facility has been provided in between the continuous casting machines (CCM) and the rolling mill reheating furnace, therefore, saving a substantial amount of energy.”

Furthermore, he explains, the integrated nature of the plant’s operations also contributes to in-country value (ICV) capture. Direct reduction iron (DRI), which is fed as hot direct reduction iron (HDRI) at around 650-700 deg C to the steel melt shop (SMS) is also produced within the complex. And now with the installation of the rebar mill, the billets required as its feedstock will be produced in the SMS.

In addition, the rebar mill will also enable JSIS to market Made-in-Oman Jindal Panther Rebars to its existing global customer base in the GCC and Africa. The new rebar mill along with its existing 1 MTPA rebar mill increases Jindal Shadeed’s global rebar production capacity by 140 per cent, taking it to 2.4 MTPA.

The JSIS steel facility at Sohar ... state of the art.

Jindal Steel and Power acquired JSIS from Al Ghaith Holdings of Abu Dhabi in 2010. Since then, Jindal Shadeed has grown exponentially to become the first and largest integrated steelmaker in Oman and the fourth largest in the Gulf region.

Jindal Shadeed had earlier set up the largest electric arc furnace in the Arabian Peninsula and commissioned a 1.5 MTPA DRI plant in December 2010 within a short period of its acquisition. In April 2014, it commissioned a 2 MTPA steel melt shop with a record 27 months to produce square and round billets.

“Today, Jindal Shadeed is the only steelmaker in the GCC to export special quality billets to Europe for automotive applications as well as special quality round billets to Saudi Arabia for manufacturing of seamless pipes,” says Ansari.

Ansari says Jindal Shadeed aims to not only make Oman self-sufficient in meeting its steel needs, but also cater to demands of the entire Middle East. Additionally, it is taking initiatives to promote SMEs (small and medium enterprises) in Oman.

“There is enormous opportunity for investment of SMEs in downstream industries, such as forging units, pipe manufacturing plants, cutting and bending, and so on. There are good prospects for SMEs in maintenance, repair, and other ancillary steel industries,” says Ansari.

He says Jindal Shadeed has been providing technical support as well as placing substantial orders for the supply of various items required for the operation and maintenance of the plant.

“There is a strong potential for the growth of a thriving downstream industry created by the Jindal Shadeed Complex,” he adds.

Jindal Shadeed has won prestigious awards such as the world’s best performing Midrex plant (1.5 MTPA category) and Frost & Sullivan’s Steel Manufacturing Product Line Strategy Leadership Award. Last year, it also bagged the esteemed Sultan Qaboos Award for Industrial Performance Excellence.