Dow Jones: India Tribunal Suspends Environmental OK To Posco Plant

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India Tribunal Suspends Environmental OK To Posco Plant Staff Reporters

NEW DELHI (Dow Jones)--An Indian quasi-judicial body has suspended an environmental clearance given to South Korean steelmaker Posco (005490.SE) to build a steel plant in the eastern state of Orissa, the Press Trust of India reported Friday. The National Green Tribunal's ruling is likely to further delay the project, already beset with protests from local landowners who don't want to give up their land for the factory. According to the report, the tribunal has asked the ministry of environment and forests to review the project afresh. The news agency didn't say whether or not the ministry of environment plans to appeal the tribunal's decision.

The ministry had last year given Posco approval to build a steel plant with a capacity of 4.0 million metric tons a year. It had also given the company clearance for a 400 megawatt power plant and a port to handle raw materials and finished goods. The ministry's approval had restarted the project which had failed to take off the ground for nearly six years after Posco signed an initial agreement with the state government of Orissa. The original plan was to build a 12-million-ton plant with an estimated cost of $12 billion, billed as the biggest-ever foreign investment commitment to India. When it gave the approval last year, the ministry said the plant's expansion beyond 4.0 million tons would require the company to again seek environmental clearance.

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