Rs 27,106 crore investment lined up under PLI scheme for specialty steel

New Delhi, Feb 7 (IANS) The Production-Linked Investment (PLI) scheme for high-value specialty steel has succeeded in attracting commitments for investments by various companies to the tune of Rs. 27,106 crore, out of which Rs.18,848 crore has been achieved till December 2024, Minister of State for Steel Bhupathiraju Srinivasa Varma informed Parliament on Friday.

The production of specialty steel up to December 2024 is 12, 58,000 tonnes, the minister said in a written reply to a question in the Rajya Sabha.

The PLI Scheme for specialty steel was launched with the objective of attracting investments to boost the production of value-added steel in the country.

The scheme covers five broad product categories including Coated Steel Products, High Strength Steel, Specialty Rails, Alloy Steel Products & Steel wires and Electrical Steel.

The second round of the scheme was launched on January 6, 2025 within the overall budget allocated for it.

To ensure wider participation in the second round, irrespective of the company size, a dedicated web portal for PLI scheme 1.1 has been launched and wide publicity has been given through the media, the minister said.

Frequent webinars are being held with companies that express interest to participate in the scheme.

Rules of participation in the scheme have also been eased, such as allowing 50 per cent of investment in cases where companies invest in augmentation of existing facilities to participate in the notified sub-categories, he pointed out.

The government has taken several measures to create a conducive policy environment for boosting the steel sector in the country which include promotion of ‘Made in India’ steel through government procurement.

In order to improve raw material availability and reduce raw material cost for specialty steel, the government has reduced the Basic Customs Duty on Ferro Nickel, from 2.5 per cent to zero, making it duty-free and extended the duty exemption on ferrous scrap up to March 31, 2026, the minister explained.

Besides monitoring and quality control of imports is being undertaken to check the dumping of cheap products in the country by foreign companies.

Revamping of the Steel Import Monitoring System (SIMS) has also been done for effective monitoring of imports to provide granular details on imports to the domestic steel industry.

Steel Quality Control Orders banning sub-standard steel products in the domestic market as well as imports have also been issued to ensure the availability of quality steel to industry, users and the public at large and encourage the production of specialty steel, the minister added.

–IANS

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