India is hopeful of occupying the second slot in global steel output after China while the government has also taken steps to encourage secondary steel producers to boost performance, the Steel Ministry said Tuesday.
Growing in conjunction with the primary steel sector, the secondary steel sector holds enormous potential for growth and opportunities in the country, the ministry said in a statement.
"Strong performance of the secondary steel sector has added muscle to India's steel production. Encouraged by the overall potential, the Government of India has taken various initiatives to improve the performance of this sector....Based on the present growth pattern (of steel), it is expected that India will rise to the second position after China," the statement said.
The National Steel Policy 2017 has set a target of 300 million tonnes per annum (MTPA) of production capacity by 2030.
The production capacity in 2017-18 has already reached 137.97 million tonnes (MT).
Enumerating the steps to promote secondary steel producers besides instituting award, the government said these included supporting energy efficiency projects and R&D activities, strengthening institutional support and protecting domestic producers from below-cost import from foreign countries through anti-dumping measures.
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The ministry will be giving away awards to the secondary steel sector on September 13, 2018 in New Delhi. The awards have been instituted in order to encourage the secondary steel sector as it plays a key role as a growth engine for the national economy and employment generation.
The statement said one of the significant aspects of the secondary steel sector is that it reaches out to millions of people in the rural areas, meeting rural demand.
This sector has certain specific advantages over the primary steel sector such as lower capital and land requirements and the capability to produce special sections and customized products, the statement said.
It added that the sector is bound to play a major role in actualising the growth target of 300 million tonnes of steel production capacity by 2030.
The secondary steel sector comprises various sub-sectors such as sponge iron units, re-rolling mills, cold rolling mills, galvanising units, wire drawing units, and tinplate producers with annual production capacity of less than 1 million tonne and they meet the country's demand for value added steel products.
The World crude steel production in 2017 registered a growth rate of about 5.3 per cent as compared to the previous year. The global production in 2017 stood at 1691.2 million tonnes.
With about 6 per cent share in the total world crude steel production, India occupies the third position behind China and Japan. The steel industry in India contributes nearly 2 per cent to the country's gross domestic product (GDP).
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