Thursday, October 28,
Several secondary steel producers across the country, covering sponge iron units, mini steel plants and rolling mills, are trying to regroup themselves to form an organization at the national level to take up issue of rationalization of iron ore prices.
According to Mr Anil Nachrani, President of the Chhattisgarh Sponge Iron Manufacturers Association, “Since 2006-07, the prices of iron ore increased nearly 400 per cent, from Rs 1,200 to Rs 6,000 a tonne, while during the same period the steel prices increased by 17.63 per cent , from Rs 22,953 to Rs 27,000 a tonne”.
The State Govt. has no control over the private mine-owners as result they are free to decide their own prices, he added.
The secondary steel producers are finding it hard to operate at such higher input costs and squeezed margins. Already some units had pulled down shutters and many more would follow suit unless something was done urgently about the iron ore prices.
Now it will be interesting to see how the Union Govt. responds to this news because the current situation cannot continue for an indefinite period.
Source: The Business Line
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