NEW DELHI: Tata Steel expects to bring Neelachal Ispat Nigam Ltd (NINL) under its fold through a merger within the current financial year, with the final approval from the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) now awaited.“The amalgamation of NINL with Tata Steel remains on track for completion this financial year,” Koushik Chatterjee, Executive Director and Chief Financial Officer (CFO) of Tata Steel, said.The NCLT is scheduled to hear the matter later this month. Its final approval will pave the way for Tata Steel’s proposed Rs 40,000 crore expansion at the NINL facility.Tata Steel acquired NINL’s assets for Rs 12,100 crore through its erstwhile subsidiary, Tata Steel Long Products (TSLP). The acquisition was completed in July 2022 and included a steel manufacturing unit with an annual production capacity of 1 million tonnes per annum (MTPA).The company plans to add around 5 million tonnes of capacity to the facility, which is located about 5-10 km from its Kalinganagar steel plant. The proposed investment is part of Tata Steel’s long products expansion plans in the region.“We have… announced another 5 million tonne expansion in Neelachal (Ispat Nigam), which is also in Kalinganagar. It is a long products expansion, and we have announced that it is a Rs 40,000 crore project,” Tata Steel CEO and Managing Director T V Narendran recently told PTI.NINL was the first state-owned steel company to be privatised by the Centre. Tata Steel is among the top global steelmakers, with an annual crude steel capacity of 36 million tonnes.