Mumbai/Bangalore, Aug. 19 -- South Korean steelmaker Posco Holdings and JSW Steel Ltd intend to spend Rs.70,000-80,000 crore ($8-9 billion) to set up a 6 million tonne per annum steel plant possibly in Odisha, two executives said. A 900-acre land that JSW Steel purchased in Odisha during the April-June quarter could be used for the project, they said, declining to be identified. JSW Steel chief executive Jayant Acharya had said earlier that no project had been finalised for the land. "This (the land) is closer to the city of Cuttack,Paradeep Port, and the mining area. It makes sense for us to have a land bank in Orissa, and that is why we have acquired it. There is, as of now, no plan, but it is for future expansion, if required for any," Acharya told Mint in a post-earnings interview in July. On Monday, Posco and JSW Steel signed a non-binding preliminary agreement to explore setting up a steel plant in India, marking the South Korean steelmaker's third attempt to establish a presence in one of the world's fastest-growing economies. Per the agreement for a proposed 50:50 joint venture, Posco and JSW Steel said in a statement that they were considering Odisha as a key location for a 6 million tonne per annum (mtpa) integrated steel plant. Posco's latest effort to enter India aligns with the steel ministry's ambition to nearly double the country's steel production capacity to 300 mtpa by 2030. It also comes as ArcelorMittal Nippon Steel India, a 60-40 joint venture between Luxembourg-based ArcelorMittal and Japan's Nippon Steel, prepares to increase its steel production capacity from 10 mtpa last year to 40 mtpa by 2035. "For Posco, India is an emerging market, where steel demand is growing despite a global slowdown," said Suman Kumar, vice president-metals and mining, at financial services firm Dolat Capital. "Setting up locally gives them access to demand without being subject to import duties that India imposes on countries like Vietnam, China, or Korea. Even with a 50:50 JV, Posco would secure half of the incremental earnings, making the venture financially attractive for them," he added. JSW Steel's joint venture with Posco is its second such partnership with a foreign steelmaker. In 2010, JFE Steel Corporation, the second-largest steelmaker in Japan, invested Rs.4,800 crore and picked up a 15% in JSW Steel, as the billionaire Sajjan Jindal-owned company looked to reduce its debt. JSW Steel capped JFE's investment at 15%; the Japanese steel firm continues to hold its stake. In May 2021, JSW Steel announced a memorandum of undertaking with JFE Steel for manufacturing grain-oriented electrical steel sheets, which are mainly used to make the core of transformers and other large electrical machinery. This led to a joint venture in 2024 to set up a steel plant in Karnataka. Earlier this month, JSW Steel and JFE Steel announced plans to expand capacity at their facilities in Karnataka and Maharashtra. JSW Steel and Posco did not immediately reply to emailed queries seeking further details on the partnership....