N A L C O
National Aluminium
Company Ltd. (NALCO) was incorporated in 1981, in the public sector
following major investment decision of Govt. of India to exploit
a part of the large deposits of bauxite, discovered in the east
coast. Aluminium Pechiney of France, a world leader in the field,
provided the technology and the basic engineering for its bauxite
mine, alumina refinery and smelter.
Today,
as a Star Trading House and an ISO 9002 & 14001 company, Nalco
has emerged as the largest integrated bauxite-aluminium complex
in Asia, enabling India to witness a quantum jump in alumina and
aluminium production.
On Panchpatmali
hills of Koraput district in Orissa, a fully mechanised open-cast
mine of 24, 00,000 tpy capacity is in operation since 1985, serving
feedstock to Alumina Refinery located on the foothills. The capacity
has been expanded now to 48,00,000 tpy. In operation since 1986,
the 8,00,000 tpy Alumina Refinery is located in the picturesque
valley of Damanjodi. The capacity now has gone up expanded to
15,75,000 tpy. A 2.30,000 tpy capacity Aluminium Smelter is located
at Angul in Orissa. Based on energy efficient state-of-the-art
technology of smelting and pollution control, the Smelter is in
operation since 1987. Its capacity is being expanded to 3,45,000
tpy and likely to be completed by 2003.
Close to the Aluminium
Smelter, a Captive Power Plant of 720 MW capacity has been established
to feed the smelter. Its capacity is being expanded to 840 mw.
On the
inner harbour of
Vishakhapatnam Port, on the Bay of Bengal, Nalco has mechanised
storage and ship handling facilities for export of alumina in
bulk.
In operation since
1986, Nalco's Alumina Refinery, having two parallel streams of
4,00,000 tpy capacity each, is designed to provide 4,00,000 tonnes
of alumina to the company's smelter at Angul and export the balance
4,00,000 tonnes in overseas markets through Vishakhapatnam Port.
The salient technological feature of the Alumina Refinery are:
low temperature atmospheric pressure digestion process, energy
efficient fluidised bed calciners of 2x1400 tpd and co-generation
of 3x18.5 mw power by use of back pressure turbine in steam generation
plant.
