Lok Sabha Question No. 3531 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2020-03-16
Subject: Iron Ore and Finished Iron
Ministry: STEEL
Asked by: Dr. T. Sumathy (a) Thamizhachi Thangapandian

THE MINISTER OF STEEL

## LOK SABHA

## UNSTARRED QUESTION NO.3531 FOR ANSWER ON 16/03/2020

## IRON ORE AND FINISHED IRON

3531.  DR. T. SUMATHY (a) THAMIZHACHI THANGAPANDIAN:

Will the Minister of STEEL be pleased to state:

- (a) the total production capacity, actual production, consumption and the export of both iron ore and finished Steel of all Steel plants in the country;
- (b) whether there is dearth in the supply of iron ore or raw material for the Steel plants in the country;
- (c) if so, the details thereof and the reasons therefor along with the steps taken by the Government to make Steel industry more efficient;
- (d) whether  the  Steel  Authority  of  India  Limited  and  the  Rashtriya  Ispat  Nigam Limited  are  focusing  on  opening  new  market,  maximisation  of  sales  and  high standards of customer services; and
- (e) if so, the details thereof and the steps taken in this regard and the outcome of the efforts made by them during the said period?

## ANSWER

(SHRI DHARMENDRA PRADHAN)

- (a) The production, export and estimated consumption of iron ore in the country are as under:-

(in million tonnes)

| Year    |   Production |   Export |   Estimated Consumption |
|---------|--------------|----------|-------------------------|
| 2018-19 |        207.7 |     16.2 |                  159.94 |

(Source: JPC/IBM)

The crude steel capacity, crude steel production and total finished steel export and consumption in the country are as under:-

(in million tonnes)

| Year    |   Crude Steel Capacity |   Crude Steel Production |   Total Finished Steel Export |   Total Finished Steel Consumption |
|---------|------------------------|--------------------------|-------------------------------|------------------------------------|
| 2018-19 |                 142.24 |                   110.92 |                          6.36 |                              98.71 |

Source: JPC

(b)&(c):  The  production  of  iron  ore  in  the  country  is  sufficient  to  meet  the  current demand/consumption  of  iron  ore  by  domestic  steel  industry.  However,  the  entire demand of coking coal is not met from domestic production as the availability of highquality coking coal (low-ash coal) in the country is limited and thus no option is left but to resort to import of coking coal.

As regards coking coal, during 2018-19 the total demand of coking coal for steel industry was 58.37 MT.  Out of this, 51.83 MT were met through imports, 1.6 MT was provided by Bharat Coking Coal Limited (BCCL) and Coal India Limited (CIL) and remaining was catered by captive collieries of SAIL and TATA Steel.

(d)&(e): Steel Authority of India Limited (SAIL): SAIL is focussed on maximising sales  through  existing  and  new  markets.  There  are  continuous  efforts  to  improve upon the customer services. During 2018-19, saleable steel sales were 14.11 Million Tonnes. In the current financial year 2019-20 till Dec, 2019, the saleable steel sales are about 10.7 Million Tonnes, which is a growth of about 7.7% over CPLY. SAIL has made  efforts  to  improve  customer  services  through  introduction  of  new  brands  of reinforcement Bars & Parallel Flanged Structurals, Digital Payment Methods, Doordelivery, Incentivisation of local MSMEs around its Plants etc.

SAIL has also exported various products to new international markets. Some of the initiatives taken towards higher customer satisfaction for export markets are:-

- i. Commencing operations from Paradip Port for exports
- ii. Increased  number  of  containerized  shipments  for  catering  to  smaller  sized export orders.

Rashtriya  Ispat  Nigam  Limited  (RINL): RINL  policies are directed towards enhancing  its  presence  in  the  steel  market  while  supplying  quality  steel  to  the customers.    For  providing  fillip/boost  to  the  steel  consumption  in  rural  India,  proactive campaign is made to highlight usage of RINL products & their advantages in the community infrastructure in rural & semi-urban areas.

RINL regularly supplies steel products to many MSME units, including SSICs & NSICs, engaged in the manufacturing sector. Besides, RINL has a large network of Manufacturers,  Project  customers  &  Retailers  to  cater  to  the  steel  requirements across the country. RINL is giving emphasis and thrust on exports.

To improve the existing process & products and also to develop new products, RINL  interacts  with  its  customers  on  regular  basis  and  takes  their  feedback  and requirement.

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