PLI scheme for specialty steel likely to attract Russian investors

Steel manufacturing firms from Russia are expected to make investments in India under the production-linked investment (PLI) scheme for specialty steel, according to an official.

Mukesh Kumar, the Director of Steel Research & Technology Mission of India (SRTMI), said there are some Russian companies interested in setting up businesses in India.

The SRTMI is a collaborative research platform formed jointly by the steel ministry and domestic steel players which facilitate research and development (R&D) in the iron and steel sector by strengthening association among industry, academia and research bodies.

Kumar was replying to a question on whether there are potential domestic and international players who could invest in India's steel sector under the PLI Scheme for Specialty Steel.

"Our Steel Minister Ram Chandra Prasad Singh recently went to Russia. We are expecting steel producing companies that have technologies like NLMK and Severstal of Russia," he told PTI.

Severstal even wanted to set up a steel plant having an annual capacity of three million tonnes in Karnataka with NMDC. The project couldn't take off due to various reasons, Kumar said.

NLMK is also looking to set a electrical steel plant in Maharashtra, he said adding that these two companies and others can come to invest under the scheme.

He further said that mainly steel producing companies with in-house technical support can come.

Secondly, technology providers can come indirectly joining hands with Indian companies to develop new steel grade products.

Electricals industry and automakers which require the grades in the scheme may tie up with steel makers, asking them to develop products for them.

On July 22, the Union Cabinet chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi had approved the Rs 6,322-crore PLI scheme to boost production of specialty steel in India, attract additional investment of about Rs 40,000 crore and generate fresh 5.25 lakh job opportunities.

The five categories of specialty steel which have been included in the PLI scheme are coated/plated steel products, high strength/wear resistant steel, specialty rails, alloy steel products, steel wires and electrical steel.

Industries like automobile, electrical, defence, pipes etc are consumers of these grades of steel, and are importing the same from outside India.

The government aims to save Rs 33,000 crore forex which goes out of India annually in exchange of import of specialty steel.