JSW Cement sets up new slag cement plant, India

JSW Cement has established a 5Mta slag cement plant at Nandyal in Kurnool district, the slag for which is supplied by the company's steel plant in Karnataka.

RC Sodani, CEO and director of JSW Cement told Business Line India that at the product is being sold at a slightly lower price than OPC, stating: "Our cement unit is in production or the past six months and the market response has been very encouraging so far."

Currently the company sells slag cement in the southern states and parts of Maharashtra but is planning on exploring other markets in due course, according to Mr Sodani.

On the costing side, he said: "Without compromising on quality, we sell our cement at a slightly lesser cost, INR5 less for a bag than for ordinary cement. We are sure it will make inroads into the market."

JSW Cement has two smaller cement units in Karnataka with a total capacity of 5.2Mt and has ambitious future expansion plans. Mr Sodani states: "We have plans to take it [capacity] up to 20Mta by 2020 at an additional investment of INR5000 crore." Units are expected to be set up in Rajasthan, West Bengal and Karnataka.