JSW Steel returns Bengal plant land, looks for alternatives

After deciding to return 294 acres of acquired land to the farmers for the mega project in West Bengal's Salboni, JSW Steel Wednesday said it will continue to work with the state government to find alternatives for establishing raw material linkages to implement the long-delayed enterprise.

"In this backdrop, financing a capital-intensive greenfield project will be very challenging. Consequently, the company decided to put the project implementation on hold until raw material linkages for the project are reliably established," the company informed the National Stock Exchange in a statement here.

Post the handover, JSW Bengal - a subsidiary of JSW Steel which was setting up the project - will be left with 4,268 acres of government land leased to it for the Rs.35,000 crore integrated steel, power and cement project.

The company bought 294 acres of land from 485 farmers, paying Rs.3 lakh per acre, which is nearly 275 percent higher then the then prevalent rate. Also, free shares of equivalent amount and a job for a member of every land-selling family were promised.

However, with lack of availability of raw materials impeding the project, the company decided to return the land. Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee Monday announced the company's decision to return the land free of cost to the farmers.