Government notifies PLI scheme guidelines for specialty steel

Five categories of specialty steel have been included in the PLI scheme

The government on Friday said it has notified guidelines for the recently announced Production Linked Incentive (PLI) scheme for specialty steel.

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.

In a statement, the Ministry of Steel said that "guidelines for an effective operation and smooth implementation of PLI Scheme have been notified on October 20, 2021 on the website of the ministry. Guidelines offer clarity on operational aspects of the scheme such as the application, eligibility, disbursement of incentive and so on".

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, the ministry said.

According to the guidelines available on the website of the steel ministry, a company looking to avail the benefits of the scheme should be registered in India under the Companies Act. Joint Venture companies may also apply for incentives under the scheme.

A transparent selection process will be followed to select the eligible company. Preference shall be given to eligible companies "committing to front load their investment during the scheme period...," it said.

As per the ministry statement, it is expected that the specialty steel production in India will become 42 million tonnes by the end of 2026-27. This will ensure that approximately 2.5 lakh crore worth of specialty steel will be produced and consumed in the country which would otherwise have been imported.

Similarly, the export of specialty steel will become around 5.5 million tonnes as against the current 1.7 million tonnes.

Specialty steel is a value added steel wherein normal finished steel is worked upon by way of coating, plating, heat treatment, etc to convert it into high value added steel which can be used in various strategic applications like defence, space, power, apart from automobile sector, specialised capital goods, etc.