The share of long products is slated to touch 150 million tons (mt) in the 300-mt target set by the government by 2030 from the present 46 mt. However, while there are enablers like the government’s emphasis on infrastructure development, the key challenges include obsolete technology, high pollution rates and tax evasion in the secondary sector, Vijay Kumar Chama, Executive Vice-President (S&M), Jindal Steel & Power Limited, tells Madhumita Mookerji. Excerpts from an interview:
What is the total share of steel long products in the entire 100-odd million tons of steel produced in India? What is the production of long products by the integrated steel players and secondary players in this basket?
The share of long products is 46 million tons (mt) and in this kitty, the share of integrated steel producers is 16 mt and secondary producers’ share is 30 mt.
India has a target of 300 mt by 2030. What would be the demand for long products in that kitty? What factors are driving the growth of long products in India at present?
The share of long products will be 150 mt in the 300 mt targeted by 2030. The current growth drivers will be the National Highway Authority of India (NHAI), road projects, buildings, railways, ports and housing projects. Thanks to the overall infrastructure push by the government.
Important projects like the railway network expansion and railway electrification, those in the transmission and telecom tower sectors, national and state highways, Bharatmala projects, ports connectivity, Dedicated Freight Corridors (DFCs), Housing for All, the Smart Cities programme, etc will definitely boost long products consumption in the long run and help in growth of this sector.
Experts are betting big on infrastructure development, going forward. So, by how much would this benefit long products growth?
This story is from the January 2018 edition of Steel Insights.
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This story is from the January 2018 edition of Steel Insights.
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