PMAI seeks higher duty on export of iron ore with over 58 pc Fe content

Industry body Pellet Manufacturers Association of India (PMAI) has asked the government to increase export duty on iron ore with more than 58 per cent iron content by 20 per cent. In a letter to the Prime Minister's Office (PMO), PMAI has asked: "for an increase in export duty on iron ore of +58 plus Fe content from current 30 per cent to 50 per cent."

Export of 58 per cent plus Fe iron ore without value addition need to be discouraged, PMAI said adding that use of technology can also help in meeting the shortfall of the required grade for steel making in India. Iron ore with less than 62 per cent iron content is used for pellet manufacturing. Iron ore pellets are value-added products of leftover material or low-grade iron ore and are used in steel-making.

PMAI President Manish Kharbanda, in the letter, said India has 85 mtpa of pellets and 115 MTPA of beneficiation capacity, bulk of which is idling for want of iron ore at a reasonable price. He said iron ore with less than 62 per cent iron or Fe content can be utilised by pellet makers.

The body said local steel industry required about 157 MT of over 62 per cent grade iron ore to produce 98 MT of crude steel in the FY2017 but the production of such ore was only 127 MT. The shortfall of 30 MT was met through blending 5.8 MT of high grade imported ore and beneficiation of below 62 per cent grade iron ore, it added.

At present, India is the second largest producer of steel in the world, next to China only with 134 mtpa steel capacity. Whereas the present requirement of iron ore is over 200 mtpa, it will go up to 480 mtpa by the year 2030, when the country has plans to produce 300 mtpa of steel. The PMAI said it fears that if export continues and encouraged further, it could affect the aim of producing 300 MT steel by 2030.