Mittal urges Orissa and Jharkhand to expedite approvals

New Delhi, Sep 10: Arcelor Mittal, the world's biggest steelmaker, on Wednesday, Sep 10 urged the Orissa and Jharkhand governments to expedite approval process for the projects in the states as the delay has led to 50 per cent cost overruns to the company.

''Delay in mining and other approvals have led to delay, causing the company to spend 50 per cent more on the projects,'' company Chairman and CEO L N Mittal said while interacting with the mediapersons here. The total cost of the project may rise up to 30 billion dollars, he said. Meanwhile, he said inspite of the global slowdown, there is no dearth of demand for steel. Despite the ongoing controversy of Singur, Mr Mittal said he would not review its projects and investment plans.

''We are in talks with various state governments on mine leasing,'' India-born Mittal said. The steel tycoon said the company is mulling over to scale up its capacity in South Africa, Brazil and Mexico. However, he denied the company's foray into the power sector as of now.

UNI