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The Union Minister for Steel, Virbhadra Singh, has disclosed that a Memorandum of Understanding will be signed between the steel companies and National Mining Development Corporation (NMDC) so that limestone is supplied by the latter.
"The NMDC will soon sign MoUs with end-users, especially steel plants, as the limestone to be extracted in the Arki region is a vital raw material for making steel," Singh told.
According to him, the limestone which is supplied will be used the government-run steel plant.
"The NMDC has already reached an agreement with Gujarat Ambuja Cements Ltd to supply limestone to its cement plants. Similar, agreements would be signed with other companies too," said Singh.
The NMDC has been permitted to extract limestone from the Arki region of Solan district last year by the Himachal Pradesh government. This is one of the biggest mining projects in the state with an investment of more than Rs.5 billion.
An annual royalty of Rs.110 million will be provide to the state government and NMDC will generate direct and indirect employment for more than 5,000 people.
