The project has now been scheduled by the Tata Steel management to come up as a "back-to-back" project after the cold rolling mill complex being set up within the Tata Steel plant premises in Jamshedpur is completed.

This is because it is impossible for Tisco to proceed with the project till the Gopalpur port is built. The country's largest private sector steel company has been told that work on the port can not start for the next two years, under which circumstances it is impossible for the steel company to proceed with construction of its own steel complex.

"After all, Tata Steel did not come to Orissa for the sea breeze, it came for the port," says a source close to Tisco. Since work on the port is expected to work not before two years later, work onconstruction of the plant can not start at least 36 months from now, estimate the Tatas.

Tisco may also need to alter its technology plans for the Gopalpur project. Depending on the nature of water availability in the area, the company may try out some new technologies in Europe that have worked successfully, and in that case Tata Steel may decide against using the earlier tentatively agreed upon Corex technology.

Three factors have prevented Tata Steel from going ahead with its huge capital investment plans in Gopalpur: progress on the port, which has ultimately postponed the project schedule, linkage of iron ore, and the availability of water.

Iron ore linkage possibilities have improved slightly after the railway ministry, seeking to speed up things, sanctioned a sum in the railway budget this year for the Baitari Bansthali line. Up to this line, the iron ore for the project would have to travel a tortuous, "zig-zag" route, which would have spelt problems for the Tata Steel venture. However, while asanction for funds to build this line is now available with the authorities, no disbursement has yet taken place, and there has been no move to implement the project yet.

Meanwhile, implementation of Tata Steel's cold rolling mill at Jamshedpur is on full steam. The company has set a commissioning target date of June 2, 2000, and is proceeding on that basis. According to Tisco sources, part of the project is already part of the Jamshedpur skyline.

Already, collaborator Nippon Steel's engineering team has been unleashed round-the-clock with a top Tisco team to start off field engineering. "We are working three shifts, eight hours a shift with tremendous resolve," said a Tata Steel source, confirming that the union budget had come as a shot-in-the-arm for the long-standing Tisco proposals for a cold rolling mill.

The process of identification of the engineering-procurement-construction contractor for the project has been kicked off, but no name has yet been finalised, according to sources. The mainequipment supplier for the project will be Hitachi of Japan, and the oxygen separation is going to be the task of UK-based MNC BOC's Indian subsidiary, the Calcutta-based BOC India.