Steel Minister Emphasises On Providing Right Ecosystem For Secondary Steel Sector

The Union Minister of Steel Ram Chandra Prasad Singh has highlighted the need to empower steel manufacturing. During an event after meeting in Surat (Gujarat), where he was interacting with people engaged in steel manufacturing and consumption, the minister emphasised on understanding the challenges faced by the secondary steel sector and steel consumers. The meeting was held to provide the right ecosystem for the secondary steel sector and consumers.

The meeting was attended by the South Gujarat Chamber of Commerce, around 50 members of the secondary steel and steel consumers Association of Gujarat and officials from the Ministry of Steel and Government of Gujarat. The role of secondary steel players in Nation-building and the provision of various schemes for the secondary steel sector were discussed in the meeting. Representatives of the Gujarat Steel sector presented the major issues faced by them.

The minister also highlighted how important it was to provide a better environment for steel manufacturers and consumers to achieve the target of 300 million tonnes of steel capacity by the year 2030. Further, he emphasised on the active participation of secondary steel producers and consumers and an active synergy between state and central Government policies for achieving the intended target of ease of doing business.

India Steel Industry 

Indian steel Industry comes number second, after China, in terms of total crude steel production. Also, India is the largest producer of Direct Reduced Iron (DRI) or Sponge Iron in the world. As per the India Brand Equity Foundation, the Indian Steel Sector produced 98.39 and 92.82 Million Ton of crude steel and finished steel in Financial Year 2022 till January. The crude steel production of India is projected to grow by 18 per cent, reaching 120 million tonnes, due to increased demand. The growth factors responsible for the high demand for steel are the domestic availability of raw materials such as iron ore and cost-effective labour.

Secondary Steel Sector: Meaning and Issues 

The secondary steel sector includes individuals and businesses engaged in final refining and finishing treatment after primary steel manufacturing to achieve the required quality of Steel. With the increasing quality requirements of steel, the role of secondary steel-making is getting more important.

Some major problems faced by the secondary steel sector of India are high cost due to limited availability of coking coal, low productivity of labour, poor infrastructure and irregular supply of energy. 

Policy to Solve the Issues 

The union cabinet, with a long-term vision of nurturing the steel sector of India, introduced the National Steel Policy (NSP) 2017 in May 2017. It sought to enhance indigenous steel consumption and make sure that the quality of produced steel is as per industry standards. The policy also projected a target of achieving a production capacity of 300 million tonnes of crude steel per year by 2030.

India has traditionally been a net importer of finished steel. However, in recent years, India has become a net exporter of finished steel. In FY20-21, steel imports to India were 30 per lower while steel exports increased by 50 per cent. India is cost-competitive with respect to finished steel production but loses this advantage once the material moves out of the plant due to higher logistics costs, associated taxes and levies resulting in a price differential with respect to international prices.