In a fresh directive, India’s Ministry of Steel has asked all government companies to step up procurement of steel products from domestic producers and reduce imports, a government official said on Tuesday, November 20.
He said that the directive to increase sourcing of steel from domestic producers substituting imports have been issued to state-run companies, like oil and gas exploration and production (E&P) major, ONGC Limited, gas logistic and transporter, GAIL India Limited, Indian Railways, oil refiner and marketer, Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Limited (HPCL) and engineering procurement and construction company, EIL Limited.
The directive mentioned that steel products like rails, pipes and tubes required by these companies should not be imported, in line with the government’s policy requiring government projects to mandatorily source their steel needs from domestic steel companies, the official said.
Between June 2017 when the policy was laid out and October 2018, government companies placed orders for steel worth $1.12 billion with local steel producers and the Ministry of Steel wants sourcing from local steel companies to double over the next 12 months, the official added.