Post News Network
Bhubaneswar, Sept 3: Vedanta Resources CEO Tom Albanese Thursday met Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik at the Secretariat to discuss the supply of raw material to the company’s alumina refinery at Lanjigarh.
The meeting assumes significance in the backdrop of the company’s recent decision to close down the Lanjigarh plant due to lack of raw material linkage from within the state.
The company, in a recent statement, stated it has decided to shut down its plant as it is bearing excessive cost burden due to plant operations in the absence of any raw material linkage from within the state.
However, Albanese said the meeting with the CM was positive and the company is hopeful of the issue being resolved soon.
“The company has been struggling for the last 10 years to avail raw material from within the state to feed the plant. We are importing raw material from other states including Gujarat and Chhattisgarh,” Albanese said, adding the government has assured him that it would provide bauxite for the refinery.
A group of people from Lanjighar led by BJD MLA from the constituency Balabhadra Majhi met both the Chief Minister and steel and mines minister Prafulla Mallick recently against the decision of Vedanta to close down its plant.
Majhi, while urging the CM to prevail upon the company to not close down its alumina refinery stated that if the plant is closed, it would lead to migration and bonded labour of around 7,000 persons who are directly or indirectly earning their livelihood from the plant.
Though the state government had decided to provide raw material linkage to the company through OMC, steel and mines minister Prafulla Mallick said OMC has no running bauxite mine as of now.
The Vedanta CEO, while remaining mum on the decision of the company to close down its plant, said they are looking for a permanent solution to the issue.