Agha Steel Industries (ASIL) says its phase-2 expansion commissioning has been delayed beyond its original March 2021 schedule due to Covid-19 restrictions preventing foreign engineers from travelling to Pakistan.

The firm contracted Danieli in 2018 to supply an Endless Casting Rolling MIDA mini-mill that will take its rebar rolling capacity to 650,000 tonnes/year. It raised PKR 3.61 billion ($23.5 million) after costs through its initial public offering last year to fund the expansion, Kallanish notes.

Besides the rolling mill, ASIL is also installing a new air separation unit, the completion of which has been delayed beyond December 2020. Its current billet and rebar capacities are 450,000 t/y and 250,000 t/y respectively.

In the nine months through March ASIL’s net sales surged 43% on-year to PKR 15.56 billion and net profit rose 57% to PKR 1.6 billion. The firm said Pakistan’s economy improved in the March quarter thanks to growth in remittances, foreign direct investment, and tax collection.