Review of Operations
Indian Operations
The year 2008-09 was a historical one epitomised by the acute global financial imbalance which initially appeared to have spared India only to impact the markets adversely as the year rolled on. The global economic slowdown has impacted the steel sector as well. Amidst the turmoil in the global marketplace, Jamshedpur Works performed remarkably creating many records on the way.
In its continuing quest for performance excellence, the Company reached a major milestone by winning the coveted Deming Application Prize. This makes the Company the only integrated steel company outside Japan to win this prestigious award.
The major highlights of the year included record breaking performances by many of the production units. Hot metal production in FY 09 was up by 74000 tonnes as compared to FY 08, achieved mainly due to the superior performance of the newly commissioned ‘H’ blast furnace. Prudent selective operation of the blast furnaces helped the Company to lower its cost of production of hot metal without affecting the crude steel output.
The ‘H’ blast furnace, despite the delayed startup, has surpassed its FY 09 target by 0.3 million tonnes in its very first year of operation. Various production units including the sinter plant, LD#1, slab caster and new bar mill achieved record production during the year.
The Raw Materials Division kept pace with the production units with the OMQ (Ores, Mines & Quarries) Division producing highest ever iron ore at 10.72 million tonnes (previous best 10.29 million tonnes in FY 08). Jharia collieries also recorded highest ever production of raw coal (1.58 million tonnes over 1.48 million tonnes in FY 08).
The Company bettered its Specific Energy Consumption record set last year by achieving 6.594 GCal per tonne of crude steel as against 6.655 GCal per tonne of crude steel in FY 08. CO2 emissions reduced to 2.09 t/tonne of crude steel as against 2.146 t/tonne of crude steel in FY 08, an improvement of 2.61%.
The Company’s continuing focus on safety resulted in a 10% reduction in Lost Time Injury Frequency (LTIF) rate in the Works and an 80% reduction in the Raw Material division as compared to the previous year. The Fatality Risk Control Programme was rolled out successfully across all the divisions during the year. More than 1168 fatality potential conditions were identified and corrected with irreversible engineering solutions.
The Long Products Division was awarded the prestigious certificate by CARES, UK for superior quality rebars. These rebars guarantee a minimum of 5 million cycles of fatigue strength. Tata Steel Limited is the only rebar manufacturer in India to be awarded this accredition.
