Bengal finally figures on the global aluminium map. On Wednesday, the Vedanta group signed an agreement with West Bengal Industrial Development Corporation (WBIDC) to set up an aluminium smelter and power plant at a cost of Rs 20,000 crore.
Company officials said the smelting unit would have a capacity of 6.5 lakh tonne and the power plant's capacity would be 3,000 MW. Both ventures will come up in Bidhanbag near
Asansol within three years.
The venture would need 1,000 acres. "Our government will help Vedanta acquire the land," chief minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee said, adding that the company already has 270 acres.
Vedanta group chairman Anil Agarwal said he was also keen on helping the state set up a metal park near the smelting plant. The entire 3,000 MW of power generated will be used for captive purposes.
A portion of that, however, could be given to downstream units in the proposed metal park.
The twin projects will generate 2,500 jobs and indirect employment would be more than 25,000.
