The Jharkhand government has invited the Chinese company to the state, which is still upset with the recent decision of global steel tycoon Lakshmi Mittal to shift his plant to Orissa.
The Jharkhand government under former chief minister Arjun Munda had signed agreements with a total of 46 domestic and foreign companies involving a total investment of over Rs 2,00,000 crore. These are now hanging in limbo following the installation of a new government led by independent legislator Madhu Koda and backed by the United Progressive Alliance coalition at the Centre.
However, an official delegation of the Jharkhand government met the Sinosteel top brass including its president Huang Tianwen recently in New Delhi and extended an invitation to the company to explore investment opportunities in Jharkhand.
The director of industry of the Jharkhand government, Rahul Purwar, said the government made a presentation to the Sinosteel top brass and extended an invitation to the company to visit Jharkhand to explore investment opportunities in the state. He claimed that the Chinese company had responded positively and assured to send a team to Jharkhand to assess the opportunities for investment.
According to a source in the mining sector, Sinosteel was planning to invest in mines and steel plants in India. The company's first priority was Orissa followed by Jharkhand and West Bengal, he claimed.
At present, Sinosteel purchased iron ore from India for sale in China. Sources said India exported over 68 million tones of iron ore valued at $5.2 billion to China and this accounted for about 83 per cent on India's total iron ore exports last year. China's steel production had reached 349 million tonne last year.