- Pellet offers stable in Raipur amid limited trade
- Ongoing plant shutdowns creating supply shortage
Pellet prices in Raipur have remained firm over the last couple of days, with market participants reporting limited but steady trade activity. Offers from local producers stayed stable, while buying inquiries were moderate, reflecting a cautious stance among buyers.
Price movements, trades
PELLEX, BigMint’s bi-weekly domestic pellet (Fe63%) index for Raipur, remained stable at INR 10,300/t ($117/t) DAP on 12 September 2025 compared to the previous assessment on 9 September. Deals for around 42,000 t were recorded in the Raipur market in the last couple of days by local pellet suppliers.
Raipur-based pellet producers kept their offers for Fe 63/63.5% (+/-0.5%) material stable at INR 10,200-10,500/t ($116-119/t) exw recently. Meanwhile, a few plants were under maintenance shutdown.
Some market traction was also observed from Odisha-based suppliers, who managed to conclude trades in Raipur during this period.
Some suppliers offered pellets at INR 10,000-10,400/t ($113-118/t) DAP Raipur, but buyers favoured deals from local plants. Deals for around 10,000 t was recorded at INR 9900/t DAP Raipur concluded by Odisha sellers.
Market scenario
Supporting factors have emerged from the sponge iron and semi-finished steel segments, where prices held firm over the past week. A market participant said, “The stability in downstream markets has given pellet producers some confidence to maintain their offers without reducing prices. The ongoing plant shutdown by a few sellers is also creating the limited availability of material and keeping prices firm. Though other nearby Raipur regions offer are also not viable.
A pellet supplier informed, “With some producers keeping sales closed, the overall supply in the spot market has thinned, which has kept prices on the northward end.”
A buyer said, “The market is in a wait-and-watch mode. Until stronger demand emerges or production resumes fully, prices will continue to move within a narrow but volatile range.”
NMDC Chhattisgarh conducted an auction for 66,200 t of iron ore from its Bacheli mines on 11 September. The entire 17,200-t DR CLO (Fe 67%) were booked at 6% premium (base prices INR 6,910/t); 6,000-t-sized lumps (10-20 mm, Fe 65.5%) were booked at 8.4% premium (base prices INR 6,300/t); and 43,000-t fines (Fe 64%) remained unsold against INR 5,290/t (base price). Prices were FOR basis, inclusive of royalty, DMF, and NMEDT.
Rationale
- PELLEX has been derived using data points, i.e., trades, offers, and bids. To download the detailed methodology, click here.
- Seven (7) deals were reported in this publishing window, and five (5) were taken for calculation. Thus, the T1 trade category was accorded 50% weightage.
- Fourteen (14) firm offers, bids, and indicative prices were heard. Ten (10) were taken for price calculation and given a balance of 50% weightage.
Key market drivers
- Sponge iron tags rise w-o-w: P-DRI prices climbed by INR 300/t ($4/t) w-o-w to INR 23,900/t ($271/t) exw-Raipur on 12 September while inching up INR 100/t ($1/t) d-o-d. Improved demand was noted, with moderate volumes booked at varying price levels. Market volatility was arise from positive sign from northern markets.
- Billet prices down w-o-w: Billet prices in Raipur slightly dropped by INR 100/t ($1/t) w-o-w to INR 36,850/t ($417/t) exw today. Prices increased by INR 50/t ($1/t) d-o-d. The uptrend in billet prices was largely influenced by improved trade activity in today’s trading sessions, and stronger cues from the neighbouring markets supported today’s sentiments in the semi-finished steel segment.
Outlook
According to BigMint, pellet prices are expected to remain firm in the near term. Uncertainty over buying levels, coupled with fluctuating sentiments in sponge iron and semi-finished steel, is likely to influence pellet trade dynamics.
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