Visakhapatnam Steel Plant sets record with 31 lakh tonnes of hot metal production despite financial crisis

RINL-VSP sets production record despite financial crisis, unpaid salaries, and impending layoffs, earning ₹14,500 crore in sales revenue.

Despite the financial crisis and the inability to pay full salaries to employees from the past few months of this financial year 2024-25, Rashtriya Ispat Nigam Limited-Visakhapatnam Steel Plant (RINL-VSP) has created a record by producing 31 lakh metric tonnes of hot metal production (direct product from blast furnaces) in the pre-scheduled financial year from April (2024) to January (2025), according to reliable sources from the company.

RINL’s highest annual record production (hot metal) was 57 lakh tonnes in the financial year 2021-2022, and its highest monthly production was 5.79 lakh tonnes in March, 2021. In the recently ended January, 2025, it produced 4.18 lakh tonnes of hot metal.

In terms of sales, RINL-VSP has earned a revenue of ₹14,500 crore by selling about 27 lakh metric tonnes of steel products across the country in 10 months of this financial year.

Month-wise, the revenue from steel sales was ₹1,681 crore in April (2024), May (₹1,088 crore), June (₹1,632 crores), July (₹1,607 crore), August (₹1,644 crores), September (₹1,065 crore), October (₹1,158 crores), November (₹1,010 crores), December (₹1,675 crore) and January (₹1,973 crore).

The average monthly revenue is ₹1,450 crore from the sales.

“This 31 lakh metric tonnes of production, and sales revenue of ₹14,500 crore for 10 months of this FY 2024-25, that too from limited blast furnaces, is not a small achievement in the current plant condition, that too due to lack of proper ore, manpower and support from the government. Even though proper salaries have not been paid on time for the last few months, this is possible only with the dedication of the employees. An average of more than ₹1,400 crore to ₹1,500 crore has been earned per month through steel sales, but there is no money for salaries from the management,” said Varasala Srinivasa Rao, leader of Visakha Ukku Parirakshana Porata Committee.

“In the last few months, none of them have received 100% salary for any month. Everyone has received 30-50% monthly salaries. More than 300% salaries are pending with the steel management,” said Mr. Srinivasa Rao.