Ministry of Steel Favours Conservation of iron ore
The Ministry of Steel supported the case of Steel sector in India for the need to conserve iron ore saying it was imperative to make the sector competitive vis-a-vis that of China's.
India has an edge over China regarding iron ore reserves while China has advantage for its coking coal reserve.
It is well known that China regulates its coking coal. According to Secretary Steel, Govt of India It should not happen at any juncture that Indian steel industry is made to depend on imports of both coking coal and iron ore. The steel sector would require about 140 MT of iron ore by 2011-12 and if the production level reaches 191 MT by 2019-20, then the country would need about 320 MT of iron ore. Secretary Steel, Mr Pandey said, "So there is clearly a case for conserving our ore reserves."
Pandey's comments assume importance amid reports that the government is on the verge of finalising the National Mineral Policy (NMP), wherein it is trying to address the problem of steelmakers who have been repeatedly demanding controlling the export of iron ore to the meet their expansion plans. "If it happens that the country was being constrained to import ore, then such a disadvantage would be painful for the Indian steel industry," Pandey observed.
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