Steel production plan thwarted

According to commodity pricing agency Platts, India´s ambition to increase annual steel production to 300 mn tonne by 2025 has been thwarted by slower than expected growth in consumption. Industry participants surveyed by Platts expect steel demand to rise 4-5 per cent this financial year to 80 mt. Indian steel capacity increased by 46 per cent to about 110 mt a year during the fiscal ended March 2015 from levels of 75 mt per year in fiscal 2010. Steel demand in India is weak due to a slump in the construction, capital goods and automobile sectors, which are the main consumers of steel. This has resulted in estimated capacity utilisation for integrated steelmakers in India falling to 81 per cent in last fiscal from 88 per cent five years ago.