Page 14 - Steel Industry

Steel industry hopes Budget will focus on infra, fair trade measures

Companies want support for capacity addition and anti-dumping measures against substandard imports

Domestic steel sector still in recovery mode post-Covid: Tata Steel CEO

The steel sector in the country is still in recovery mode after the Covid pandemic, Tata Steel CEO and MD T V Narendran said on Monday. He said demand for steel will continue to grow, backed by the government's focus on infrastructure development. This (2023) has been good year for the steel sector in India, even though it was a challenging period globally, Narendran said here. The recovery of the steel industry is still continuing post the global pandemic. In fact, we recovered well due to good handling of micro-economy by the RBI, and the investment that has been made for infrastructure development, he said at a New Year programme here. The demand for steel grew 10-12 per cent in 2023 and this trend should continue, he said, while expressing apprehension about increasing import of steel from China. China has been exporting 8 million tonnes of steel every month (in 2023), which was the highest since 2015, and this has an impact on international steel prices as well as profitabili

Vizag Steel Plant forges deal with JSPL for Rs 900 cr working capital

The Rashtriya Ispat Nigam Ltd, known as Vizag steel plant, has forged a deal with Jindal Steel and Power Ltd to get an infusion of working capital up to Rs 900 crore in a bid to propel sales revenue, monthly turnover and slash losses. The timely deal enables the steel plant to procure raw material and start consistent Blast Furnace-3 (BF-3) operations with the planned blowing-in scheduled on December 30 at a capacity of two lakh tonnes of hot metal per month, an official said here on Thursday. "The arrangement with JSPL will ensure availability of about Rs 800 -900 crore for RINL in the form of working capital advance and raw materials required for consistent operation of BF - 3, against which RINL will be supplying about 90,000 tonnes of cast blooms every month from Steel Melting Shop-2 (SMS-2) of RINL," said Vizag Steel Plant's chairman and managing director (CMD) Atul Bhatt in a meeting with the trade unions. According to Bhatt, the arrangement with the New Delhi-headquartered JS

JTL Industries' board approves Rs 1,200 crore investment proposal

JTL Industries Ltd said its board has approved an investment proposal of Rs 1,200 crore in company's arm JTL Tubes Ltd to set up a project in Maharashtra. The investment will be funded partly from the internal accruals and partly from proceeds of a proposed issue, the steel pipes maker said on Monday. The company's board of directors has approved "issue of securities by way of qualified institutions placement (QIP) for aggregate amount not exceeding Rs 500 crore in one or more tranches, including green shoe option," the filing said. The board also approved a proposal to invest up to an aggregate sum of Rs 1,200 crore in wholly-owned subsidiary JTL Tubes Limited to set up a mega project in Maharashtra, an exchange filing said. JTL Industries Ltd (formerly known as JTL Infra Ltd) is the largest producer of electric resistance welded (ERW) steel pipes in India, with a capacity to produce more than 6 lakh metric tonnes per annum.

Demand for TMT rebars to grow over next 3-4 months: Tata Steel VP

The demand for TMT rebars in India will continue to grow over the next three to four months, a senior industry executive has said. There is a good demand seen from the construction, housing, and infrastructure segments, where new projects are coming up all over the country, Ashish Anupam, Vice President - Long Products at Tata Steel Ltd, said. Besides, there is consistency in government policies. So, sentiments are also high among the investors, he added. "I am very bullish for three reasons. Firstly, the festive season is over, workers are back to work. The monsoon is also over. This is the best time for construction because there is no heat and all as well. Next three to four months, I am more bullish from the demand side. Prices, I can't say as it depends on raw materials," he told PTI. According to market research firm BigMint (formerly SteelMint), the TMT prices through blast furnaces have fallen from Rs 56,700 a tonne in September to Rs 55,900/tonne in November. The TMT rebar

Primary steel industry to face challenges in H2 amid weak market: ICRA

The primary steel industry is likely to experience a challenging environment during the second half of FY24 amid increased input cost and weakening steel prices, according to Icra. The domestic hot rolled coil (HRC) prices have corrected by 6.7 per cent since early October 2023, while the rebar prices witnessed a fall of 4.7 per cent in the same period, the ratings agency said. The overall industry's operating profit margins in H2 FY2024 are expected to be lower compared to H1 FY2024, largely driven by weaker profitability from the blast furnace operators, Icra said in its latest report. It further said it "expects the operating environment of the domestic steel industry to get more challenging in the second half of the current fiscal as elevated raw material costs and weakening steel prices nibble at profit margins." While seaborne coking coal prices have been volatile since Q2 FY2024, thermal coal prices have remained more range-bound. Coupled with the higher resilience of long

Steel firms to hike qtrly contract prices after downward revision earlier

Tata Steel, JSW Steel, ArcelorMittal Nippon Steel India and other producers settling contracts

Steel demand to touch 190 MT-mark; production to reach 210 MT: SteelMint

India's steel demand is expected to grow at a CAGR of 7 per cent to touch 190 Million Tonne (MT) level by 2030, according to a report by SteelMint India. The demand will be largely fuelled by construction and infrastructure sectors, which contribute 60-65 per cent to the demand, the market research firm said. In 2030, India's steel demand is projected to reach 190 MT based on a 7 per cent Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR). "In the best case scenario, it can also reach 230 MT by 2030," the report titled 'India's Steel and Coking Coal Demand 2030' stated. The demand will also be pushed by sectors like auto and engineering, and factors like population growth, growing urbanisation, various government initiatives will be its key drivers. The demand is expected to touch 120 MT mark by 2023-end, and production will be at 136 MT, as per the report. India's crude steel production is expected to be at 210 MT by 2030, 45 per cent higher from production levels of 2023. Many countries, incl

'Made in India' label on steel products to boost brand India: Scindia

The government on Thursday rolled out an initiative under which steel makers will add 'Made in India' labels to their products to promote locally-made goods at the global level. The move is aimed at realising Prime Minister Narendra Modi's 'Make in India' vision, Union Steel Minister Jyotiraditya M Scindia said. In the first phase, all Integrated Steel Players (ISPs) have been included under the initiative to introduce branding and labelling of 'Made-in-India' steel products in the global market, the Ministry of Steel said in a statement. The Secondary Steel Industries (SSIs) will join the initiative in the second phase, it said. Scindia chaired a consultative committee meeting to discuss the progress on the first-of-its kind initiative by the Ministry of Steel and the Ministry of Commerce and Industry to introduce branding and labelling of 'Made-in-India' steel products in the global market. Apart from making Indian steel products more attractive to buyers, this would also ensure

JSW Steel completes Rs 750 cr investment in JSW Paints to fuel expansion

JSW Steel on Thursday said it has completed the Rs 750 crore investment in JSW Paints Pvt Ltd (JSW Paints). Like JSW Steel, JSW Paints is a group company of Sajjan Jindal-owned JSW Group. In a regulatory filing, JSW Steel said it has completed the last tranche of investment of around Rs 75 crore in JSW Paints on Wednesday. "With the last tranche of investment of Rs 74,99,99,903, the company has completed making the entire investment of Rs 750,00,00,000 in JSW Paints and has been intimated by JSW Paints today that it has on November 22, 2023, completed the allotment in respect of the aforesaid strategic investment," the filing said. Post this allotment, the company holds 2,94,82,565 equity shares in JSW Paints, representing 12.84 per cent of the issued and paid-up equity capital of JSW Paints (11.85 per cent on a fully diluted basis). On July 23, 2021, the JSW Steel board approved to make a strategic investment of Rs 750 crore in JSW Paints in 3-4 tranches between between FY 2021-2

How billionaire Lakshmi Mittal's brother got a $500 mn bailout in Nigeria

Pramod Mittal, whose career in the steel industry has been less glittering than his better-known sibling has a string of abandoned factories and a trail of unpaid debts to his name

Australia assures India of steady coking coal supplies amid shortage

Australia accounts for over half of India's coking coal imports of around 70 million metric tons a year

Centre to seek steady coking coal supplies from Australia for steel mills

Australia accounts for over half of India's coking coal imports of around 70 million metric tons a year

Will not accept unfair taxes on steel, aluminum industry: Piyush Goyal

Expressing serious concerns over the European Union's move to impose carbon tax on imports from certain sectors like steel, Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal on Tuesday assured the domestic industry that India will not accept such unfair taxes and will fight to get a fair deal for producers and exporters. He said India has already flagged its concerns over the carbon tax with the European Union (EU) and in the WTO (World Trade Organization). The CBAM (Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism) or carbon tax (a kind of import duty) will come into effect from January 1, 2026, but from October 1 this year, domestic companies from seven carbon-intensive sectors, including steel, cement, fertiliser, aluminium and hydrocarbon products, will have to share data with regard to carbon emissions with the EU. "I will assure you that we are extremely concerned about CBAM...We are taking it up with the WTO very very seriously. We shall try to work and fight to get a fair deal for the Indian ..

Steel expansion plans threatened by scrap metal export restrictions

The country's consumption of ferrous scrap metal will jump 50% to 60 million tons by the end of the decade, and imports will double to about 20 million tons, it estimates

Tata Steel sees consolidated net loss of Rs 6,196 cr in Sept quarter

The company has also taken a charge towards restructuring and other provisions of Rs 3,612 crore in consolidated financial statements

Jindal Steel Q2 results: PAT surges more than six-fold to Rs 1,390 crore

The company's costs fell 13%, helped by a drop in costs of iron ore and metallurgical coal, the two main raw materials used in making steel

Hi-Tech Pipes Q2 results: Net profit grows over two-fold to Rs 10.53 cr

Hi-Tech Pipes has posted over two-fold jump in consolidated net profit at Rs 10.53 crore in the September quarter, on higher income. It had clocked Rs 4.34 crore net profit in the July-September period of the preceding 2022-23 fiscal, the company said in a regulatory filing on Saturday. The company's total income rose to Rs 746.73 crore in the quarter under review, from Rs 599.40 crore in the year-ago quarter. In a separate statement, Hi-Tech Pipes said total sales volumes increased by 17.45 per cent to 1 lakh tonnes, as compared to 0.85 lakh tonnes in Q2 FY23, led by better demand for steel tubes/structural steel products and value-added products. Hi-Tech Pipes' Managing Director Ajay Kumar Bansal said during this quarter the company reported its highest ever revenue from operations. The healthy order book from government projects like Jal Jeevan Mission helped in maintaining a good momentum. "We will continue to increase the share of value-added products in our product basket an

JSW Steel returns to black; reports Rs 2,773 cr net profit in July-Sept qtr

JSW Steel on Friday reported returning to black as it posted a consolidated net profit of Rs 2,773 crore for the July-September quarter on the back of higher income. The steelmaker had suffered a loss of Rs 915 crore in the second quarter of the last financial year. The total income increased to Rs 44,821 crore in the second quarter of the current fiscal as against Rs 41,966 crore a year ago, JSW Steel said in a regulatory filing. JSW Steel's expenses were lower at Rs 40,801 crore in the quarter under review against Rs 43,354 crore in the year-ago quarter. Part of O P Jindal Group, JSW Steel is a leading steel-producing company in India.

Tata Steel Long Products' Jul-Sept net loss narrows to Rs 460 crore

Tata Steel Long Products Ltd (TSLP) on Friday said its consolidated net loss narrowed to Rs 460.23 crore during the September quarter. It had clocked a net loss of Rs 661.80 crore in the year-ago period, the company said in a regulatory filing. The company's total income rose to Rs 3,005.46 crore from Rs 1,921.01 crore in the year-ago period, it said. Expenses also rose to Rs 3,442.03 crore as against Rs 2,696.25 crore last year, according to the filing. TSLP, formerly known as Tata Sponge Iron Ltd, is in the business of manufacturing high alloy steel, primarily for the auto sector and wire rope industry. With one million-tonne capacity, it is one of the largest speciality steel plants in India in the long product segment located in Jamshedpur, Jharkhand.