Midhani signs MoU with R&D arm of SAIL

KOLKATA: Mishra Dhatu Nigam Limited ( Midhani), a PSU under ministry of defence, has signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Research and Development Centre for Iron & Steel ( RDCIS), the R&D arm of Steel Authority of India Limited (SAIL), to jointly undertake R&D work in iron & steel industry.

To begin with the two state owned companies have decided to take up collaborative research in cold rolled grain oriented (CRGO) steel products. CRGO, referred to in industry circles as “electrical steel”, is a high value product with virtually no production base in India.

Only around 4 to 5 global steel producers have capability to produce CRGO. India’s annual requirement amounting to around $ 2 billion is almost entirely imported. Apart from SAIL, private players like Tata Steel and JSW Steel have also evinced interest in manufacturing CRGO in India.

Electrical steel, also called transformer steel, is specialty steel usually manufactured in the form of cold rolled strips less than 2 mm thick. When assembled, they form the laminated core of transformer or the parts of electric motors which is the key for generation, transmission and distribution of electricity to end-users.