Date:19/03/2004 URL: http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/2004/03/19/stories/2004031902480200.htm

Back Indian companies gear up to raise metcoke capacities

Ambarish Mukherjee

New Delhi , March 18

WORRIED over the future availability of metallurgical coke in the international market and with its prices spiralling by over 100 per cent in the past year, a number of Indian companies are gearing up to increase domestic capacity in metallurgical coke.

Metallurgical coke is the second most important raw material after iron ore for making carbon steel. The increase in metcoke prices is being cited as one of the main reasons for a rise in steel prices during the past few months.

According to officials in steel making companies, since January this year several new metcoke manufacturing facilities have been planned involving investments of over Rs 2,700 crore.

Most of these plans have been announced during the past two months and discussions are on with Government authorities before giving a final shape to the projects.

According to steel industry sources, the Chennai-based Shriram group envisages the largest investment of Rs 1,600 crore and is in talks with the West Bengal Government to set up a coke oven plant in Haldia with a capacity of 2.5 million tonnes. According to sources, the feasibility report for this project will be completed by April 2004.

Steel major Tata Steel too is in the process of setting up a metallurgical coke plant in Haldia, with an investment of approximately Rs 1,000 crore. The proposed plant will be blending imported coking coal with coking coal mined from Jharkhand. According to sources, the plan is at an advanced stage and company officials are in talks with officials in the Haldia Development Authority (HDA) to identify a location for setting up the plant.

Karnataka-based Eco Coke and Power has also finalised plans to invest Rs 85 crore for a coking coal plant in the State with a proposed capacity of 2.8 lakh tonnes per annum. The company has already spoken to some of the primary steel makers to become vendors, officials in one of the companies said.

Gujarat NRE Coke is also planning to expand its capacity. It has also forged a joint venture with Kalyani Steel to set up a coke oven battery with a proposed capacity of 3.24 lakh tonnes per annum, involving investments of around Rs 45 crore.

With increasing pressure in the global coking coal market following China's cut in its exports, the domestic steel industry is under tremendous pressure because this is a primary raw material for producing carbon steel. According to a top official in one of the steel companies, there are some more proposals in the pipeline that are likely to come to the Government level for necessary clearances over the next few months.