Steel being a deregulated sector, decisions relating to setting up of steel units are taken by individual steel producers in private or public sector, based on commercial consideration and market dynamics.
The total number of steel plants producing crude steel in the country during 2019-20 is 914. In the public sector, work is currently going on in NMDC Steel Plant in Nagarnar, Chhattisgarh, which is a Greenfield steel plant.
The details of import of finished steel and production of finished steel in the country in last three years and current year i.e. April-December, 2020 are as under :
|
Import of Finished Steel
|
Production of Finished Steel (mt)
|
|
Year
|
Qty. (mt)
|
|
|
2017-18
|
7.48
|
95.01
|
|
2018-19
|
7.84
|
101.29
|
|
2019-20
|
6.77
|
102.62
|
|
April-December, 2020*
|
3.21
|
66.56
|
|
Source: JPC; mt=million tonnes; * provisional
|
|
Import of steel has reduced in the last three years whereas domestic steel production has been increasing except during the current year following the Covid-19 pandemic. Import of certain steel grades which are not manufactured or manufactured in adequate quantity in the country is made for supporting the manufacturing sector as well as the country’s export of machinery, automobiles etc.
This information was given by the Union Minister for Steel Shri Dharmendra Pradhan in a written reply in the Rajya Sabha today.
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YKB/SK