9SEPTEMBER 2025INDIA BOOSTS PRODUCTION TO ACHIEVE SELF-RELIANCE IN MEDICAL DEVICESLLOYDS METALS COMMISSIONS 360 KTPA SPONGE IRON PLANT IN MAHARASHTRAAmit Agrawal, Secretary, Department of Pharmaceuticals, pointed out the evolution of India into a global hub for medical technology at the 17th CII Global MedTech Summit in New Delhi.He made the country's rapid healthcare innovation journey very clear while sharing the theme "Innovating for a Healthier Future ­ Advancing MedTech for Global Impact, Make in India, Make for the World". Agrawal remarked that India with its huge population and rising need for Lloyds Metals and Energy Limited (Lloyds Metals) announced the commissioning of its 360,000 tonnes per annum (360 KTPA) sponge iron plant at Ghugus, Maharashtra, which would allow reliable growth in its steel-making capacity. The company has disclosed that the first of the two kilns has been fired and operations are being ramped up gradually.The Ghugus project was executed on a turnkey basis by Lloyds Engineering Works Limited and has been completed reasonably priced healthcare solutions is inspiring double-digit growth in the MedTech sector. He gave the example of India after the pandemic has gone an extraordinary mile to manufacture high-tech medical apparatus like MRI and CT scanners locally, besides other products such as mammography units, ventilators, dialysis machines, stents, heart valves, and implant devices which were earlier believed cannot be produced in India.In order to speed this process up, the government is making the medical device parks bigger, improving the facilities, and carrying out the targeted policy moves like the Production Linked Incentive (PLI) Scheme and the 5,000 crore Promotion of Research and Innovation in Pharma MedTech Sector (PRIP) Scheme anticipating. The objectives of these reforms are to support India's value chain, to raise the efficiency at the lower costs and to enable the innovation.Agrawal appealed for greater cooperation between the industry, the innovators, and the investors. He pointed to India not only as a country that can satisfy all the demands from inside but also one that can deliver healthcare solutions to the world in a cost-effective manner. Then, he claimed that MedTech sector will become a source of millions of jobs and will contribute immensely in the realization of India's vision of Viksit Bharat 2047. in record time, after receiving Environmental Clearance in February 2024.The achievement represents the third additional major operation milestone for Lloyds Metals this financial period, following the successful commissioning of an 85-km slurry pipeline, and a 4 MTPA pellet plant.Commenting on the development, Rajesh Gupta, Managing Director of Lloyds Metals, highlighted the strategic importance of timely execution. "Commissioning the Ghugus plant in just over 18 months from receiving the Environmental Clearance reflects the strength of our internal planning and project execution frameworks. For us, timely execution is not just an operational milestone; it is a strategic lever that enables faster monetisation, operating efficiency, and long-term value creation", he said.Lloyds Metals' total installed sponge iron capacity now stands at a total of 700 KTPA. The Ghugus plant is expected to be a key facility to enhance captive utilisation of its mined iron ore and to create an integrated steel value chain for the company.The new plant is in line with Lloyds Metals' overall strategy of developing future-fit assets and becoming one of the most efficient and low-cost producers of steel in India.
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