According to the preliminary data released by the World Steel Association (worldsteel), global direct reduced iron (DRI) production in the countries reporting to the worldsteel in 2011 came to 63.5 million metric tons, increasing by 12.2 percent compared to 2010.
Meanwhile, in December 2011, world DRI output totaled 5.34 million metric tons, increasing four percent as compared to the previous month and up by 10 percent year on year.
The worldsteel data show that India was the largest DRI producer among the countries surveyed in 2011. India's estimated DRI output was 27.56 million metric tons in 2011, increasing 33.5 percent compared to 2010 levels, followed by Iran with a DRI output of 10.15 million mt, up 8.6 percent year on year.
The top 10 DRI producing countries in 2011* are as follows:
Country | Volume (x 1,000 mt) | Y-o-y change (%) |
27,560 | 33.5 | |
10,150 | 8.6 | |
5,945 | 9 | |
Saudi Arabia | 5,153 | 4.4 |
Venezuela | 4,470 | 18.9 |
Egypt | 2,933 | - |
Trinidad and Tobago | 1,915 | 9.3 |
Argentina | 1,650 | 5.4 |
South Africa | 1,400 | -24 |
Qatar | 1,335 | -37.9 |
*The 14 countries reporting to worldsteel accounted for approximately 87 percent of total world direct reduced iron production in 2011.