Rise in ore price: Jindal seeks Govt intervention

| | BHUBANESWAR | in Bhubaneswar

Jindal Steel & Power Ltd (JSPL) Chairman Naveen Jindal on Friday urged the Odisha Government to intervene in the issue of the increasing iron ore price and freight rate in the State.

“While the iron ore price in international market is decreasing, the same in Odisha is increasing. Also, the transporters are increasing the freight rate time to time. This adds to the challenges faced by the steel industries in the State,” Jindal told reporters after meeting Chief Secretary AP Padhi at the State Secretariat here.

He also informed that there is a scarcity of coal for steel industries. The premium for coal in e-auction by the Mahanadi Coalfields Limited (MCL) goes up to 100%. “In Odisha, we are buying the world’s costliest coal through e-auction,” he said and urged the MCL and the Coal India to increase production.

The consistent increase of inputs price for the steel industry is resulting in a hiked cost of production. The steel industries are facing difficulties as the raw materials prices are increasing whereas the price of finished steel products is going down, Jindal said.

It is to be noted that during April to July 2018, steel prices have been reduced from Rs 41,000 to Rs 39,000 per tonne whereas iron ore lump price has surged up by 10.58% from Rs 4,725 to Rs 5,225 per tonne and fines by 17% from Rs 2,050 to Rs 2,400 per tonne, he pointed out.

He requested the Government to take immediate steps to increase iron ore availability for the industries in competitive price and implement the notification regarding freight rate for mineral transport in the State.

Jindal also said that a number of steel industries, other than two or three like the JSPL, are under NCLT. Therefore, the Government should intervene to rationalise the inputs prices and the transportation rates.

The JSPL has invested Rs 35,000 crore in the State which includes India’s largest pelletisation complex of 9-MTPA capacity at Barbil in and Odisha’s largest steel plant of 6-MTPA capacity at Angul.