Indian upper house of Parliament, The Rajya Sabha, has passed the amended Mining and Minerals bill (MMDR), which makes auction of non-coal mines like Iron, Manganese, Bauxite possible.
The bill is as a big relief to Indian steel makers as they can now own a mine through auction process.
On similar lines, Odisha government indicated that they may take a call on lease extension of 80 mines next month. These mines include 18 key Iron ore & Manganese ore mines closed since May’14.
Market participants expect mining to resume in Odisha by May 2015, which may put extreme pressure on domestic Iron ore prices.
Indian Sponge Iron Prices stable on thin trade volumes
The Indian Sponge iron market was more or less stable this week amid limited
trade activity and sideways sentiment. Sponge manufacturers continue to hold offers, although volatility in Billet and Ingot prices kept buying interest low.
Current offers for 80 FeM Sponge iron (C-DRI) was assessed at INR 18,000-18,100/MT (Ex- Raipur) and 79/80 FeM Pellet Sponge (P-DRI) was assessed at INR 16,500/MT (Ex- Raipur).
Increased supply of lumps from NMDC (after it cut prices by INR 300-500/MT in March) has resulted in an increase in Sponge iron production. Trending, Pellet prices have come under pressure in domestic market as manufacturers prefer NMDC ore over Pellets. Fe 63% Pellets are assessed in the range of INR 6,100-6,300/MT.
Offers for 78 FeM Sponge Iron (C-DRI) was assessed at INR 17,800-17,900/MT (Ex- Durgapur) and 78-79 FeM Pellet Sponge (P-DRI) was assessed at INR 16,100-16,200/MT (Ex- Durgapur).
“The Iron ore issue seems to be coming to an end with the Mining bill. Also, imported Iron ore lump offers have increased this week amid fall in global prices. Current offers for South African 6-40mm, 64% Fe are at around USD 78/MT CIF India for April deliveries. ” said a Sponge iron manufacturer based in West Bengal.
Indian Sponge Prices as on 20 Mar‘15
| Market’s | Grade (FeM) | C-DRI | W-o-W | P-DRI | W-o-W |
| Rourkela | 78-80 | 16,950 | – 150 | 15,500 | – 300 |
| Durgapur# | 78-80 | 17,800 | – 500 | 16,200 | – 400 |
| Raipur | 79-80 | 18,050 | – 150 | 16,500 | 0 |
| Bellary | 77-78 | 17,250 | – 350 | 16,000 | – 400 |
Basic Prices in INR/MT, ex-works
#delivered to Plant
Payment advance/next day
Source: SteelMint Research
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