India: NMDC’s iron ore rake movements drop 2% m-o-m in Nov’25

• NMDC’s iron ore production rises 17% m-o-m in Nov’25
• Dispatches to Chhattisgarh-based plants fall by 14% m-o-m

The National Mineral Development Corporation (NMDC), India’s largest iron ore miner, dispatched 538 rakes from its Chhattisgarh mines in November, equivalent to 2.07 million tonnes (mnt) of iron ore.

This was down 2.4% compared to 551 rakes (2.12 mnt) in October, as per BigMint data. On a y-o-y basis, November dispatches remained largely stable compared with 539 rakes in November 2024.

NMDC’s rake movements declined in November, largely due to a sharp reduction in dispatches to the NMDC Nagarnar steel plant and RINL, driven by weak finished steel demand and volatility in raw material prices. However, increased volumes to Jindal Steel Odisha helped cushion the overall decline, resulting in a comparatively smaller drop in total dispatches.

Notably, these rake movements were within Chhattisgarh and to other state-based units but excluded supply to AM/NS India through the slurry pipeline. Each rake carries around 3,850 t of iron ore.

Meanwhile, NMDC’s monthly output reached 5.01 mnt in November, up 17.3% from 4.27 mnt in October.

Sourcing by Chhattisgarh-based units decline 14% m-o-m

NMDC dispatched 184 (0.70 mnt) iron ore rakes to Chhattisgarh-based units in November, a decrement of 14% as against 214 (0.82 mnt) in October. Specially, supplies to NMDC’s Nagarnar plant fell by 21.4% to 103 rakes in November against 131 in October. However, NMDC’s rake movements to other steelmakers dropped m-o-m.

NMDC increased its list prices of iron ore CLO (calibrated lump ore), while fines remained unchanged on 15 November 2025. The miner fixed prices of DR CLO (10-40 mm, Fe 67%) at INR 6,250/tonne (t) ($71/t) and of iron ore fines (-10 mm, Fe 64%) at INR 4,750/t ($54/t). Prices are on FOR basis from the miner’s Bacheli complex and include royalty, DMF, and NMEDT.

Sourcing by units outside Chhattisgarh up 5% m-o-m

Overall, NMDC’s iron ore movements to plants outside Chhattisgarh rose by 5% to 354 rakes in November against 337 rakes in October.

Intake by Rashtriya Ispat Nigam Limited (RINL) fell, though emerging as the top buyer in November, receiving 136 rakes against 148 in the previous month. The drop was expected as the producer is sourcing pellets from South India-based pellet producers via LTA.

Dispatches to KIOCL stood at 65 in November, compared with 60 in October.

Rake movements to Jindal Steel Odisha Limited saw a modest uptick, receiving 41 rakes in November against 11 rakes in October. This has supported the dispatch volume to the other states based plants by NMDC.

JSW Steel’s Dolvi plant received 80 iron ore rakes in November, marking a stable demand sentiment in the market.

Outlook

Rake dispatches from NMDC are likely to remain strong in December, driven by firm demand for iron ore. Additional support is expected from sponge iron producers, many of whom have recently shifted their raw material sourcing towards DR CLO in response to evolving price dynamics.