AgenciesA bitter fight has broken out among domestic optic fibre cable (OFC) makers, following a probe by the Department of Commerce into alleged dumping of fibre and a possible move to impose an anti-dumping duty on it.
Some Indian optic fibre cable manufacturers, such as HFCL, and industry body Telecom Equipment and Services Export Promotion Council (TEPC) said anti-dumping duty on the single-mode fibre that they use to produce optic fibre cable would escalate costs, making a "handful of large players" rake in profits. But the likes of STL and Birla Furukawa Fibre Optics have backed the government's move, saying it would help boost local production.
The ministry's investigation arm is evaluating imposing anti-dumping duty on the import of single-mode optical fibre from China, Korea and Indonesia, according to the commerce department. "It is not appropriate to impose anti-dumping duty on optical fibre; Indian production capacity is not enough compared to demand. Moreover, there is no dumping happening from any country," HFCL managing director Mahendra Nahata told ET.
"Domestic producers are raising prices by 30-50% from previous contracts and revisiting old supply contracts. They will use dumping duty to create market monopoly, and eventually kill other companies," said Sandeep Aggarwal, chairman of TEPC.
STL, however, wants such a levy to be imposed. "STL has been engaging with the relevant authorities to create a level playing field for domestic players," its MD Ankit Agarwal said.
Some Indian optic fibre cable manufacturers, such as HFCL, and industry body Telecom Equipment and Services Export Promotion Council (TEPC) said anti-dumping duty on the single-mode fibre that they use to produce optic fibre cable would escalate costs, making a "handful of large players" rake in profits. But the likes of STL and Birla Furukawa Fibre Optics have backed the government's move, saying it would help boost local production.
The ministry's investigation arm is evaluating imposing anti-dumping duty on the import of single-mode optical fibre from China, Korea and Indonesia, according to the commerce department. "It is not appropriate to impose anti-dumping duty on optical fibre; Indian production capacity is not enough compared to demand. Moreover, there is no dumping happening from any country," HFCL managing director Mahendra Nahata told ET.
"Domestic producers are raising prices by 30-50% from previous contracts and revisiting old supply contracts. They will use dumping duty to create market monopoly, and eventually kill other companies," said Sandeep Aggarwal, chairman of TEPC.
STL, however, wants such a levy to be imposed. "STL has been engaging with the relevant authorities to create a level playing field for domestic players," its MD Ankit Agarwal said.
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