Only Higher Govt Spending On Infra Will Help Steel Sector

　　Tata Steel Managing Director TV Narendran on Thursday called for higher government spending on infrastructure. Referring to the safeguard duty as a “temporary” relief, he said the real solution for the steel sector woes lies in demand creation.

　　“The safeguard (duty), to me, is a temporary solution to a temporary problem (Chinese dumping). We shouldn’t be vulnerable to other country’s problems and be the solution to them…I would like the government to accelerate the expenditure on infrastructure,” he told media persons here.

　　The Tata Steel MD was speaking on the sidelines of the inauguration of the new premises of the Indian Iron and Steel Sector Skill Council (IISSSC), a non-profit that facilitates education and training in the sector.

　　The steel sector will likely do better in 2016, he added.

　　According to Narendran, domestic steel demand is expected to grow 5-6 per cent in the next fiscal, led by higher consumption in construction — which consumes nearly 60 per cent of the steel produced in the country — and the auto sector.

　　“In the last six months, the auto industry has been much better. But, the biggest driver is always construction. It has been slightly positive this year. So 5-6 per cent is not way off,” he added. The World Steel Association has predicted India’s steel demand to grow 7-8 per over the next two-three years. “Last year (calendar 2015) was very bad in terms of global steel prices. But I believe steel prices have hit the bottom. They should be better in 2016-17 than the current year fiscal,” he said.

　　Kalinganagar plant

　　According to Narendran, the company will look to commission the first phase of its Kalinganagar plant in Odisha) in April. The first phase will have a 3 million tonne capacity.

　　“Some of the facilities inside the plant are working on a trial basis. But the plant is in the final stages,” he said.