Government said its priority is to accelerate the pace of steel capacity creation in the country in both public and private sector. Addressing a press conference in New Delhi, steel minister, Virbhadra Singh said government has set a projected target of 124 million tonnes steel production by December 2012. He said this would require expediting the progress of both green field and brown-field capacity expansion specially by steel majors like Steel Authority of India Limited and Rashtriya Ispat Nigam Limited. Highlighting the major achievements of the steel ministry during the last one year, Mr Singh said steel PSUs earned a profit of over eight thousand crore rupees. He said major thrust is being given to the expansion and modernisation of SAIL's five units across the country.