JSW Steel's third phase of capacity expansion at its Dolvi plant in Maharashtra will be among the company's most cost-effective brownfield projects. The company plans to invest over Rs 19,000 crore in this phase, aimed at meeting the growing demand for value-added special steel products, said Jayant Acharya, CEO of JSW Steel.
The strategic investment will leverage existing infrastructure and equipment from the second phase, significantly reducing costs. This will increase Dolvi's capacity by 5 million tonnes, bringing the total to 15 million tonnes per annum by September 2027. Nationally, JSW Steel targets a total production capacity of 42 million tonnes by this date.
Acharya highlighted that this cost-effective expansion will be primarily financed through internal accruals. "It will be very cost effective since some of the infrastructure facilities are already there (and) some of the equipment are already there as part of phase two", he explained.
The overall capital expenditure for JSW Steel is set to exceed ₹64,000 crore over the next three years. The company’s investment at Dolvi is approximately $460 per tonne of capacity added, significantly below the global average of $700 per tonne, underscoring the project's cost efficiency.
The Dolvi expansion is part of JSW Steel's broader strategy to reach a production capacity of 50 million tonnes by 2030-31, in line with India's National Steel Policy 2017, which envisages a national capacity of 300 million tonnes by the same period. Competing closely, Tata Steel aims for a production capacity of 40 million tonnes by 2030-31.
"In Dolvi, we will hold the capacity at 15 million tonnes", Acharya noted, adding that JSW Steel has additional brownfield expansion opportunities at Vijaynagar, BPSL, and Jharsuguda, providing the potential to exceed their 50 million tonne target.