Posted on 20 Aug 2021
Crude steel output at India's private-sector Tata Steel surged by 54.8pc from a year earlier to 4.63mn t in April-June, boosted by a lower base last year.
Output was down by 2.5pc on the previous quarter after the company diverted liquid oxygen supplies to hospitals to combat India's second wave of Covid-19.
Sales rose by 41.6pc on the year to 4.15mn t, bolstered by a 16pc increase in exports, but fell by 11pc on the previous quarter because of Covid-19 led lockdowns and temporary shutdowns of some steel-consuming sectors.
The company's India operations accounted for about 58.7pc and 58.3pc of total consolidated output and sales, respectively.
"While the domestic steel prices softened a bit during July, demand is recovering again as does prices," Tata Steel's chief executive and managing director T V Narendran said. "Currently, steel prices are at a large discount to import parity prices, about 20pc less, and this should support domestic prices."
A third Covid-19 wave and potential tapering of liquidity support amid price inflation remain key risks, Narendran said.
Argus assessed India's domestic hot-rolled coil (HRC) prices at 66,500 rupees/t ($893/t) on 13 August, about 6pc down from the mid-June peak of Rs70,500/t. The Argus cfr Asean HRC index was at $904/t yesterday, up by 79pc from a year earlier.
"Flat product prices have started going up, long products also are much firmer than we would have expected during the monsoon months, so as more sectors of the economy come back on stream over the next few months, we expect things to get better," Narendran said.
India has recorded the second-highest number of Covid-19 cases after the US at 32.3mn, according to Johns Hopkins University data, although daily infections have eased since peaking in May.
Tata Steel is planning to add about 1mn t/yr of steel output in India through debottlenecking and capacity ramp-ups. A second-phase expansion of its 5mn t/yr Kalinganagar plant will diversify product mix and reduce costs.
Tata's 6mn t/yr pellet plant and 2.2mn t/yr cold rolling mill complex are expected to be commissioned in the first half of 2022. The company recently launched its Tata FerroBaled and Tata FerroShred brands of baled and shredded ferrous scrap.
Source:Argus
