POSCO finally postpones groundbreaking ceremony

It is reported that POSCO has dropped its plan to perform the groundbreaking ceremony for the proposed 12 million tonne per annum mega steel project in Orissa on April 1st 2008.

Mr Shashanka Pattnaik spokesaman of POSCO said “As on today, certain procedural sanctions still remain to be obtained, despite the best efforts of the company. Under these circumstances, it would be difficult to perform the ‘ground breaking ceremony’ on April 1st 2008.”

Mr Pattnaik added that “The company is closely monitoring the situation and trying its best to get the necessary sanctions. This will pave way for holding the ground breaking ceremony at the earliest.”

POSCO had announced the date a few months ago after a meeting between Mr Naveen Patnaik chief minister of Orissa and Mr Ku Taek Lee CEO of POSCO in New Delhi.

Meanwhile, POSCO Pratirodh Sangram Samiti has announced to go ahead with its proposed Bilkalpa Mahasamabesh rally at the proposed project site on April 1st 2008. The Samiti had announced to hold the rally in the wake of the company's announcement to perform the groundbreaking ceremony on April 1st 2008.

SAIL scouting for limestone and dolomite mines

PTI reported that Steel Authority of India Limited is scouting for fluxes mines to meet the requirement of the company, which is slated to produce 26 million tonnes of hot metal by 2010-11. Fluxes, including limestone and dolomite, which act as reducing agent, are required in the blast furnace and steel melting shop.

SAIL sources said that "SAIL is currently in expansion mode and by 2010-11 it will require 7 million tonnes of limestone and 4.1 million tonnes of dolomite to meet its requirement. It is looking for acquisition of fluxes mines."

Currently, SAIL is planning to double the capacity of its limestone mine at Kuteswar from the existing level of 1.2 million tonnes. But the nearby Bansagar dam on the Sone river posed the problem for the mine's expansion as there was water seepage from the dam.

The sources further added that National Geophysical Research Institute has been entrusted with the job of whether the water seepage could be prevented. It said "We will take the call after getting the report from the institute."

Welspun bags major spiral pipe order from North Africa

Welspun-Gujarat Stahl Rohren Limited announced that it has bagged prestigious pipeline orders worth INR 1075 Crores for the supply of spiral pipes in Northern Africa. This contract was won against European competition.

Mr BK Goenka vice CMD of the Welspun Group said "Welspun's strong demonstration of Engineering Excellence and accreditations from top oil and gas companies across the World results in new orders and reinstates our position as one of the largest and premium line pipe company in the world."

He added that Welspun reiterates its conservative policy of booking raw material, freight, foreign currency well in time.

The new order has taken Welspun’s order book position to above INR 5900 crores.

CIL to launch forward coal e auction on March 28th 2008

FE reported that Coal India Limited will roll out forward e auction on coal on March 28th 2008 for consumers and will initially allocate 7 million tonne for the forward auction on platforms provided by MSTC and MetalJunction. The allocation may be increased to 15 million tonnes for 2008-09.

Mr K Ranganath director marketing of CIL told media that two third of the total sales through forward auction will be underground coal.

Mr Ranganath though admitted the positive impact of forward auction on the underground operations, did not comment on the estimated gains to the company.

Considering the better quality parameters and higher production cost of such coal, the reserve price for forward auction is also expected to be higher than the spot auction. However, unlike the spot auction, the reserve price will be clearly underlined in the forward auction.

As per report, CIL expects to sell approximately 40 million tonne of coal through spot and forward e auction during 2008-09.

Indian steel makers call for reduction in excise duty

It is reported that Indian steel makers have offered to the government that they will reduce prices provided excise duty on the steel is brought down to a reasonable level and the same will be passed on to consumers.

Mr Moosa Raza president of Indian Steel Alliance said that "We are also sensitive to pricing issue. We suggest that the government should lower excise duty on the alloy to about 6% from the current 12% and we will duly reduce prices and pass it on to the consumers.”

CIL SECL set to make record coal production this fiscal

IANS reported that Coal India Limited’s South Eastern Coalfields Limited is set to make a record in coal production in the current fiscal.

As per report, SECL will end up producing a little over 93.5 million tonnes by the end of March 2008 as against the 91.5 million tonnes production target set for the current fiscal 2007-08.

A SECL official said that "As on March 13th 2008, the SECL has produced 88.46 million tonnes of coal as against the target of 86.43 million tonnes, registering 102.35% achievement. In last financial year 2006-07, the production in the corresponding period was 82.42 million tonnes."

SECL, which was awarded 'Mini Ratna' status by the government in 2007, produced a total of 88.502 million tonnes coals in financial year 2006-07. It has coal deposits in 5 districts of Chhattisgarh namely Bilaspur, Korba, Raigarh, Surguja and Korea and 3 districts Shahdol, Umaria, and Anuppur in Madhya Pradesh. It has a total of 93 mines, of which 72 are underground and 20 are open cast mines and 1 is mixed.

Bihar Tubes shareholders approve Sri Lakshmi Metal Buy

Bihar Tubes Ltd has informed BSE that the members at the Extra Ordinary General Meeting of the company held on March 24th 2008 have approved the proposal to acquire 100% equity of Shri Lakshmi Metal Udhyog Ltd Bangalore from its existing shareholders through share swap deal on agreed swap ratio and to issue, as consideration, 1,798,333 equity shares of INR 10 each of the company to the existing shareholders of Shri. Lakshmi Metal Udhyog Ltd on preferential basis

GSI starts survey of disputed iron mines on AP-Karnataka border

It is reported that the Geological Survey of India has taken up the survey works of the controversial iron ore mines between Obulapuram village in Anantapur district and H Siddapuram village last week end. As per report, Mr S Subba Rao director of GSI and Mr A Narsimharavulu MD of Mines and Geology department inspected four mines in the two villages.

The team, which visted the sites, has decided to establish geometric stations. It will identify the place for setting up of the stations through a satellite connection. The survey officials hope the geometric stations would permanently solve the problem between the two companies and put an end to the inter state mining problems between Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka. The survey works, to be completed in two days, would be conducted in all mines between Obulapuram and H Siddapuram and not confine only to the mines of the two companies.

The survey came in the backdrop of a proxy war between Obulapuram Mining Company and the Bellary Iron Company, accusing each other of encroaching upon their mines.

A survey was earlier conducted by officials as per the directive of the High Court but Bellary Iron Company approached the court stating that the survey was lopsided and favored the Obulapuram Mining Company. The court directed the Kadapa District Judge K Gaddenna to survey the mines and submit a report. To put an end to the controversy between the two companies, Chief Minister Dr YS Rajasekhara Reddy, on an appeal by the Bellary Iron Company, directed the Survey of India officals to conduct a survey.

CEA sees massive coal shortage in India by 2012

FE reported India, which proposes to add 78,577 mw of generation capacity in the 11th Plan period, would face a coal shortfall of 66 million tonnes by the end of 2011-12.

The report quoted a comprehensive study done by the Central Electricity Authority as saying that against the total coal requirement of 448.5 million tonnes in 2011-12, indigenous coal availability to power utilities from Coal India and subsidiaries during the terminal year is estimated at 382.4 million tonnes.

As per report, CEA has drawn up a list of 47,630 MW capacity power projects which are under construction and are due for commissioning in different years during the 5 year period. The data has been put together along with sources of coal as per linkages already provided. Further, the CEA also drawn up details of the year wise and source wise coal requirement for projects, a total of 9,040 mw, for which letters of award are expected to be placed by March or April, 2008. Morerover, the CEA also made projections of the year wise likely production of coal from captive mines and the year wise tapering coal requirement for those projects which have captive mines of their own.

Power ministry sources told FE that “CEA has submitted its report to the ministries of power and coal. CEA has called upon the power ministry to convene monthly co ordination meetings with coal secretary, member traffic, Railway Board and chairman CIL so as to co-ordinate various issues relating to coal supplies to the 11th Plan power projects. CEA has also suggested that utilities in particular and coal suppliers will have to work in tandem so that coal import can be planned in proper manner.”

Auto component makers concerned over steel price hikes

It is reported that recent surge in steel prices has becoming a major cause of concern for India’s USD 15 billion auto components sector that is already in trouble due to a lower demand in the domestic market and pressures in exports because of a stronger rupee.

Automotive Component Manufacturers’ Association members said that the rising price of steel has started affecting their profitability and the situation could get worse in the next 2 to 3 quarters.

Auto components makers said that the price of steel used in the component sector has risen by as much as 25% in the last 3 months. According to a component industry source, a further increase of steel price by INR 6,000 a tonne is expected by April 1st 2008. It added that "Given the continuous push in input cost, we do not rule out a further price hike in the coming months."

Mr Vishnu Mathur executive director of Automotive Component Manufacturers’ Association said that a survey of 53 of Automotive Component Manufacturers’ Association’s members showed a clear downward trend in profitability. It represents the interest of 558 large and medium sized parts makers in the country.

Mr Srivats Ram chairman of Automotive Component Manufacturers’ Association’s southern region said that "There are another 1000 or 1500 small and medium sized component makers who are not members of ACMA but are also affected by the rising steel price." He added that an estimated 300,000 people are directly and indirectly employed in the auto component business in India.

Parts makers said that export incentive on steel was inappropriate at this point, as the availability in the domestic industry has already been affected due to rising prices and inadequate supply.

The overall automobile industry shrunk by 5.3% between April 2007 and February 2008. While sales of passenger vehicles grew up by 12% during this period, two wheeler sales fell by 9% and medium and heavy commercial vehicles by 4%.

JSW Energy to set up 1,320 MW power plant in MP

BS reported that JSW Energy Limited has proposed to set up a 1,320 MW power plant in Madhya Pradesh and has signed a MoU last week for the purpose. JSW Energy is reported to have proposed a mega investment of INR 5,500 crore in the project, which will come up in Chhindwara district. It has already applied for coal allocation and is progressing to identify and acquire land for the thermal power project.

Mr Sanjay Bandopadhyay energy secretary of Madhya Pradesh said that "This plant will be based on super critical technology and will provide 37.5% of the power produced at the plant to MP."

Mr Bandopadhyay said that "Small companies like Mumbai based BLA Power have completed their work to an advanced stage while companies like Jindal Photo, which has proposed 1,000 MW and Torrent have not started ground work. We have given them a 6 month extension so that they can come up with the necessary details." He added that both the companies had signed a deal with the state government in January 2007 for 1,000 MW each but failed to comply with the necessary requirement within the stipulated time of 1 year.

Madhya Pradesh is still facing a huge shortage of 1,100 MW against the peak demand of 6,100 MW as the production is still restricted to 5,000 MW. State owned power plants namely the 1,000 MW Indira Sagar and 520 MW Omkareshewar are producing 500 MW and 104 MW respectively on account of low water availability and a court restriction on reservoir level.

MP government had last year signed deals with various power companies for a combined capacity of 25,000 MW. Although the power companies have yet to identify lands or acquire the land identified, small power companies like BLA Power and Today Group have reached an advanced stage to set up their power plants.

India puts global tender clause in shipbuilding subsidy plan

Livemint reported that Indian government has introduced a condition that says shipbuilders should sign contracts only through global tenders if they want to avail of a proposed 5 year subsidy of 20%. The proposed subsidy is also below the previous rate of 30%.

This is likely to hamper the industry as most of the business is actually done through a network of brokers.

Executives of top shipbuilding companies now plan to meet new government shipping secretary Mr APVN Sarma to lobby for a higher subsidy rate and easier terms. The shipbuilders are demanding that the government revoke its insistence on global tenders as it would be unrealistic.

The report quoted an executive of a shipbuilding company as saying that ''A recent cabinet note suggesting the extension of the subsidy scheme has insisted that shipbuilders sign contracts through a global tender to avail the subsidy. But 99% of international shipping companies place orders for making ships through brokers based on negotiations. We are hopeful that the shipping ministry will understand the issues faced by the companies.''

Shipping companies had been lobbying for an extension of the old scheme for 10 years. The old scheme, which expired in August 2007, had been in existence since 2000 and was extended to private shipyards in 2002. Government subsidy is given to public sector yards such as Hindustan Shipyard Limited, Cochin Shipyard Limited and Mazagon Docks Limited in installments when they are constructing ships, while private firms such as ABG Shipyard Limited, Bharati and Larsen & Toubro Limited get the subsidy only after the ship is built and delivered.

Though state run companies such as Shipping Corporation of India Limited are required to float global tenders for buying ships, private companies such as Great Eastern Shipping Co Limited or Mercator Lines Limited are free to opt for negotiations so they get a better price.

Consultant KPMG India Private Limited has recommended that shipbuilders in the country get a 10 year extension of the 30% subsidy scheme and the business be treated as an infrastructure activity, making it eligible for incentives such as tax holidays. In its report submitted to the shipping ministry last year, KPMG had recommended continuation of the subsidy till 2017 and that the rate is scaled down to 25% for another 5 years through 2022.

Power sector slump slows down electrical equipment growth

As per the latest data on Index of Industrial Production released by central government, tracking the electricity generation sector’s slowdown in growth, the electrical equipment manufacturing industry is also witnessing a fall in growth rate. The electricity generation sector recorded a growth of 3.3% in January 2008 as against 8.3% in January 2007.

Mr Sunil More director general of Indian Electrical & Electronics Manufacturers Association told BL that the electrical equipment industry produces a wide range of equipment including motors, switch gears, transformers, capacitors, etc needed by the power sector and certain segments of the industrial sector.

He added that the growth rate of the industry in the third quarter of last fiscal was about 8% to 9% as against the growth rate of about 20% in the corresponding period of the previous fiscal.

MALCO develops additive for cement industry

BS reported that Madras Aluminum Company Limited’s research & development department has converted redmud into a revenue yielding additive to cement industries.

Branded as Ferral, Malco has already started selling redmud to cement manufacturing units including Madras cement, Chettinad Cement and Pennar Cement.

Mr Suresh Rathi CEO of Madras Aluminum, while addressing the representatives of cement industries and pollution control authorities at a meeting held by Confederation of Indian Industry, said that Malco in association with the Energy Research Institute and the Tamil Nadu Pollution Control Board, had explored the possibility of using Ferral as a catalyst to reduce pollutant contents in the general atmosphere.

Ferral, with its rich contents of ferrous oxide, aluminum oxide and silicon, has found yet another application as a pigment in paint manufacturing and as an ingredient in water treatment processing.

Thermax plans slow but steady growth in power segment

Mr MS Unnikrishnan MD & CEO of Thermax said that it is planning to grow slowly but steadily in the booming power industry of India, making money without risking its shareholders.

Yet, Mr Unnikrishnan said that it would not go overboard with it and resist taking EPC orders that are sized more than half its annual turnover. He added that "Typically, power units take 4 to 5 years to be commissioned. So, if you put all that you have to execute a big contract, it can boost your order book, but will carry a long term risk."

Thermax currently has an order backlog of INR 2,700 crore, which comprises boilers, water treatment equipment, air pollution control equipment and specialty chemicals.

Mr Unnikrishnan said that "Our conservative approach has won the confidence of our shareholders. At the worst of times, our 2 rupee face value shares have traded at about INR 600."

Thermax, a leading maker of small capacity boilers for power plants, gets 65% of its revenues from boilers and engineering, procurement and construction orders. Thermax recorded sales of INR 2,330 crore in 2006-07. It made a capital spending of INR 425 crore during the current financial year, but is likely to incur much lower capital expenditure in 2008-09.

Reliance Power speeds up implementation of Sasan UMPP

It is reported that Anil Dhirubhai Ambani Group’s power arm Reliance Power Limited has accelerated the implementation of its 4,000 MW Sasan ultra mega power project. It now plans to commission at least 2 units of the mega project within the 11th Plan period.

The new target would mean the completion schedule of initial units of 660 MW each would be compressed to less than 55 months. Reliance Power had earlier agreed to commission the first unit in 69 months from the date of signing the power purchase agreement in August 2007.

The changes in the commissioning program has been made at the behest of the power ministry that wants a portion of UMPP power generation to be commissioned within 11th Plan to offset any slippage on generation target of 78,577 MW.

An official source said that "UMPP is an ambitious program of the government. If we are able to put up some UMPP capacity within 11th Plan, it could trigger a fresh wave of investment in the power sector." It added that the 2 units of Sasan may be operationalized before April 2012.

It is expected that the government may seek similar commitments from other 2 UMPP projects at Mundra and Krishnapatnam. Already a joint monitoring committee of the power ministry is evaluating all the UMPP projects to enable its fast commissioning.

NTPC calls for level playing field for fund raising

Taking a dig at private sector competitors to whom it lost the bids for ultra mega power projects, National Thermal Power Corporation has said that it is an ethical company and can overcome any competitor on a level playing field.

Mr T Sankaralingam CMD of NTPC told ET that "We cannot go and just start an IPO and start say with an INR 10 equity share at a premium of INR 450 to INR 460. If a sort of level playing field is given to us, we will definitely compete. I know a private company other than Reliance Power which has done IPO 110 times more than its issue price."

Mr Sankaralingam said that if equity norms are not distorted, then we can compete with the best and added that in a private company one has the option of straight away forgoing the fixed cost, the cost of equity, which turns out to be a big chunk of 35 paise per unit.

Referring to the practice of mopping up resources through IPOs or public offers for the new projects by the private companies, he said this premium need not be serviced immediately. He added that "The second aspect is how you look at the entire pricing? Whether you want to price just for the sake of getting a power plant and put your entire operations into problem or whatever you do is logical. Within the norms of the regulator, do not defeat the very purpose of UMPP."

Asked if he had approached the government and on level playing field what issues other than equity needed to be addressed, he said that as far as NTPC is concerned, ours is an ethical company. We will follow norms and if issues are addressed, I can tell you, you can not compete with NTPC."

REL to sign pact with Indiabulls for Raigad SEZ

Reliance Energy is likely to sign a 50:50 JV agreement with Indiabulls Real Estate Limited to develop a multi product special economic zone in Raigad district of Maharashtra.

The proposed SEZ will spread over an area of 6,000 acres of land. It will consist of an industrial processing area of 2,100 acres, a commercial area of 900 acres, a residential area of 1,500 acres and open space of 1,500 acres. It will comprise of a central core with various industry hubs.

Facilities in the central core will include convention centers, business incubation facilities with ready to move in office space and laboratories, R&D facilities and contract research, data centers and quality analysis and data retrieval facilities. Industry hubs will include institutions of learning and innovation, design and transportation facilities.

The proposed residential space will comprise of residential developments and landscaped parks with central recreational facilities such as club houses, a tennis academy and green zones to enhance the quality of life for residents. The commercial space will include provisions for hotels, shopping facilities, office space, entertainment facilities and healthcare.

BEML pays 55% interim dividend

Bharat Earth Movers Limited has declared an all time high dividend of 55% as interim dividend for the financial year 2007-08.

Mr VRS Natarajan CMD of BEML presented the cheque for INR 12.375 crore to Mr AK Antony defense minister as interim dividend for 54% of its shares held by the government of India.

During 2007, BEML had paid 40% as interim dividend for an amount of INR 9 crore for 61.2% of its shares held with central government. It is set to achieve beyond its MoU sales target of INR 2765 crore for the financial year 2007-08 and the order book position is expected to cross INR 4000 crore by the end of the current account year.

Foundation stone for Pragati phase III power plant laid

Dr Manmohan Singh Prime Minister of India has laid the foundation stone of Pragati phase III power project at Bawana in Delhi. Mr Sushil Kumar Shinde union minister of power, Mr Tejender Khanna, governor of Delhi, Ms Sheila Dikshit chief minister of Delhi and other dignitaries were present on the occasion.

In his address, Dr Singh said that INR 4000 crore project will meet the power required for Delhi to host the Commonwealth Games.
Dr Singh said that "I am delighted to be here today to lay the foundation stone for this important power project in Delhi. This project is the fulfillment of yet another promise that we have made to the citizens of Delhi. I am sure that the citizens of Delhi will be happy to learn that our Government is addressing the problem of power shortage in Delhi with seriousness and commitment."

The gas based project is an environment friendly project and helps control pollution.

India committed to widening the energy basket

Dr Manmohan Singh Prime Minister while laying the foundation stone of Pragati phase III power project at Bawana in Delhi emphasized that his government is committed to further development of nuclear energy which is also environment friendly source of power.

He called upon the young people of our country to start a new campaign for conservation of energy and asked them to think new ways of dealing with some of our energy problems.

He added “Increasing the supply of energy is one way of dealing with energy shortage in our country. A second way is to improve energy efficiency. I urge the citizens of Delhi – and all fellow citizens of India - to exercise restraint in the use of electricity. We must adopt measures that will increase the efficiency of the energy being used. When I was a child, we were told to switch off the light when leaving the room. These days, it has become fashionable to keep all the lights switched on in homes. We must rediscover the value of austerity in the use of scarce energy resources.”

Nippon Steel undecided on BF project in Brazil

Japan's largest steel maker, Nippon Steel Corp, said that it is yet to decide whether or not it will directly participate in a project now being undertaken by Brazilian affiliate Usinas Siderurgicas de Minas Gerais SA to build a new blast furnace in Brazil.

Nippon Steel said in a written statement that “There was a report that Nippon Steel will build an over-500 billion yen blast furnace in Brazil. Nothing has been decided, although it is true that Usiminas is planning to build a blast furnace.”

Nippon was responding to a report in the Nikkei newspaper that Nippon Steel is planning to spend JPY 500 billion to JPY 600 billion on a steelworks in Brazil, which would be the first vertically integrated production site operated overseas by a major Japanese steel maker.

The report said that Usiminas, Nippon Steel plans to begin construction within the year through a joint venture and that the plant is slated to go on stream in 2011. The first blast furnace will be built for slightly less than JPY 300 billion and have an annual output of 3 million tonnes, and the plans call for a second furnace to be added as soon as the mid 2010s, doubling production to 6 million tonnes.

Usiminas, in which Nippon Steel holds a 12.7% stake, had announced in August 2007 that it would spend USD 5.7 billion on building a new blast furnace, which will become operational in 2009-2011.

Sumitomo Metals develops fatigue resistant plate

Sumitomo Metal Industries Ltd announced that it has developed FCA-W (Fatigue Crack Arrester-W) steel plate which exhibits high fatigue strength in welded joints. In developing this plate, Sumitomo Metals improved the outstanding resistance against fatigue fracture of its high tensile strength FCA (Fatigue Crack Arrester) steel plate.

Steel structures that are subjected to repeated loads over many years are susceptible to fatigue fracture, a phenomenon in which a small crack (a fatigue crack) occurs at first and then spreads or propagates. Previously, the commonly held belief was that fatigue crack initiation had to be prevented in the fatigue design of steel structures. However, FCA steel plate, which Sumitomo Metals developed in 2001, was based on a new design concept that structures could withstand fatigue fracture by controlling fatigue crack propagation. This steel plate has subsequently obtained approval of manufacture from shipping registers in 4 countries and has already been used in 51 ships.

Sumitomo Metals' newly developed "FCA W steel plate is a high tensile strength steel plate which functions to prevent fatigue crack initiation in welded joints to begin with. It also controls fatigue crack propagation.

In steel structures made from conventional steel plates, the fatigue strength (ability to prevent fatigue crack initiation) in welded joints has been a vexing problem. It has generally been thought that fatigue strength in welded joints was constant, and that this couldn't be improved with steel plates, no matter what kind of steel plate was used. For this reason, in order to ensure a predetermined fatigue strength, various other methods have been employed, such as increasing the thickness of plates, attaching reinforcement members to welded joints and employing weld-toe grinding to avoid the concentration of stress.

In developing "FCA-W steel plate," Sumitomo Metals strictly controlled the chemical composition of the steel, to make it function to prevent the initiation of fatigue cracks in welded joints as well as to control the propagation of fatigue cracks, a property possessed by FCA steel plate.

This property of "FCA-W steel plate" of being able to prevent the initiation of fatigue cracks can be directly reflected in the fatigue design of steel structures, allowing the structure of ships to be designed more freely. Furthermore, the plate extends the life of ship parts to which it is applied without increasing the thickness of plates and attaching reinforcement members, and fuel efficiency is improved since increases in hull weight are avoided. Moreover, cost reductions can be expected through the elimination of weld-toe grinding and other processing.

The "FCA-W steel plate" will be applied to parts of the LNG carrier where larger fatigue damage can be expected.
(1) The ship using this steel plate
MOSS type LNG carrier to be built by Kawasaki Shipbuilding
(2) Parts to which this steel plate will be applied: the area connecting the tank covers and the upper deck (Refer to Fig.1)
Cylindrical shells of No. 2, 3, 4 tank covers and the reinforcement members inside of the upper deck under these tank covers

These parts are located in the center of the ship, and are subjected to the largest loads by longitudinal hull bending. As the structure of the tank covers resists longitudinal bending deformation of the hull caused by large wave loads, the area connecting the tank covers and the upper deck is put under relatively high stress. Repeated large wave loads thus affect the fatigue life of these parts. For this reason, "FCA-W steel plate" will be applied to these parts.

Rio appoints Morgan Stanley for sales of packaging business

The Age reported that Rio Tinto has appointed an investment bank to find a buyer for its USD 5 billion packaging business.

The packaging business was acquired last year, after Rio Tinto was successful in its takeover bid for Alcan. The offloading of the packaging business was part of the USD 38.1 billion takeover when it was announced in July last year.

The UK's Daily Telegraph newspaper said that Rio Tinto had appointed investment bank Morgan Stanley to find a new buyer for the business. It said that a deal to offload the packaging arm broke down late last year after the global credit crunch made it difficult for private equity buyers to raise the necessary funds to complete the transaction.

The paper quoting sources within the industry as saying that Morgan Stanley was likely to break up the packaging business in an effort to make it easier for private equity buyers to carry out a deal.

Alcan's packaging business is involved in the food and beverage, pharmaceutical and medical, beauty and tobacco industries. It employs 30,000 people across 31 countries and has a turnover of USD 6.2 billion.

Iron ore price negotiations – Rio unlikely to settle this month

China Securities Journal reported that Rio Tinto Group probably would not reach an agreement on contract iron ore prices with Baosteel Group Corp by April 1st 2008.

The report cited Mr Sam Walsh head of Rio as saying that Cia Vale do Rio Doce's agreement with mills to raise iron ore prices by as much as 71% for the year from April 1st 2008 did not reflect a very tight market. Rio is demanding a so called freight premium on shipments.

The report cited Mr Tom Albanese as saying that China's economy and steel industry have been growing faster than people have estimated. He added that the Asian nation's steel output may rise to as much as 550 million tonnes in 2008 from 480 million tonnes in 2007.

AK Steel approves long term agreement for coke and power

AK Steel announced that its board of directors has approved a 20 year supply contract with SunCoke Energy Inc to provide AK Steel with metallurgical grade coke and electrical power. The coke and power will come from a new facility to be constructed, owned and operated by SunCoke adjacent to AK Steel's Middletown Works.

The agreement is contingent upon, among other conditions, SunCoke receiving all necessary local, state and federal approvals and permits, as well as available economic incentives, to build and operate the proposed new facility.

The proposed new facility is a state of the art, environmentally friendly, heat recovery coke battery capable of producing about 550,000 tons of coke and 50 MW of electrical power annually. Metallurgical grade coke is produced from blends of coal, and is necessary as a fuel and a chemical reducing agent in the production of molten iron in a blast furnace. AK Steel operates coke batteries in Middletown, Ohio and Ashland, Kentucky, but must purchase about 25 percent of its annual coke requirements on the open market.

Under the agreement, AK Steel will purchase all of the coke and electrical power generated from the new plant for at least 20 years, helping AK Steel achieve its goal of more fully integrating its raw material supply. AK Steel said it has no plans to idle any of its existing cokemaking capacity if the proposed SunCoke project is consummated.

SunCoke has an option to purchase sufficient property adjacent to Middletown Works for the plant, which it has said will cost approximately USD 340 million to build, result in hundreds of temporary construction jobs, approximately 75 permanent operating and maintenance jobs and support other businesses and services in the Middletown area. SunCoke is currently awaiting a necessary zoning change requested by the City of Middletown for a portion of the property.

Mr James L Wainscott chairman, president & CEO of AK Steel said that "This agreement represents an environmentally sound, long term commitment to Middletown Works' primary operations. It will cover our internal coke capacity shortfall, and provide Middletown's blast furnace with a stable, competitive supply of this essential raw material. In addition, we will have the benefit of 50 MW of electrical power or about 25% of Middletown Works' requirement, generated with the waste heat recovered from the coking process itself."

Worker strike shuts Sidor operations - Union

Reuters reported that workers shut Venezuela's largest steelmaker, Ternium Sidor in a 24 hour strike that started on Monday afternoon to protest stalled contract talks.

Mr Nerio Fuentes a union official told Reuters that "The plant is now closed for 24 hours.”

Workers have repeatedly shut Sidor 60% owned by Argentina's Ternium as part of demands for higher pay.

Company officials were not immediately available for confirmation.

Hyundai Steel to increase investment plans -Report

The Maeil Business Newspaper reported that Hyundai Steel Co plans to increase investment for its facility expansion by KRW 600 billion (USD 600.7 million) in 2008.

The paper quoted a Hyundai Motor Group senior official saying the company's affiliate is to invest a total KRW 2.6 trillion in 2008 as part of its plan to build three furnaces by 2015 in its Tangjin factory, located south of Seoul.

The unit of Hyundai Motor Group's additional injection this year will enable the steel company to secure the building site of the third furnace.

Japanese February crude steel output up by 6.5% YoY

According to Japan Iron and Steel Federation, Japan’s production of crude steel in February 2008 went up by 6.5% YoY to 9.809 million tonnes.

JISF data showed that output from integrated steelmakers operating blast furnaces continued strong in February. Crude steel production from rotating furnaces hit 7.29 million tonnes up by 8.5% YoY while production from electric arc furnaces stood at 2.517 million tonne up by 1.2% YoY.

It said that of the 9.809 million tonnes of crude steel produced, ordinary steel accounted for 7.569 million tonnes and specialty steel for 2.240 million tonnes.

Asian coal prices fall to a 5 week low

Reuters reported that coal prices for power generators at Australia's Newcastle port fell to a five week low of below AUD 125 a tonne, due to tepid spot market demand and increased supplies from China. According to globalCOAL's NEWC index, thermal coal prices at Newcastle in the week ended March 21st 2008 fell AUD 5.22 from a week earlier to AUD 124.36 a tonne.

Prices for prompt delivery thermal coal, which galloped to a record high of AUD 150 a tonne for a spot deal struck in early February, have dropped by about AUD 25, about 17% in the past month, as urgent demand from most North Asian utilities eased following a buying frenzy last month.

The resumption of some exports from Australia and China, combined with a decline in winter heating demand with the arrival of spring, have also put downward pressure on prices. Industry sources said South Korean utilities were relatively well stocked with about three weeks worth of coal supplies, while most Japanese utilities have enough coal to burn until late April.

A sales manager at a major Indonesian coal producer said that "The spot market has been very quiet. There are hardly any spot trades and most buyers appear to be quite well stocked. Australian producers have also put in a provisional price arrangement with Japanese utilities for 2008 supplies. That's further dampening demand since the utilities don't have to shop for supplies in the spot market."

After suspending exports for nearly three weeks due to the expiry of licenses, Chinese coal producers, such as Shenhua Energy Co Ltd and China Coal Energy Co, resumed limited exports last week after the government issued new export quotas for 2008. China last Monday issued its 2008 coal export quotas at 53 million tonnes, down 24% from its quota a year ago as the government aims to channel production to its own fast growing economy.

AK Steel announces carbon steel products up by USD 50 per ton

AK Steel announced that it will increase spot market prices for its carbon steel products by USD 50 per ton for all new orders, effective immediately.

AK Steel said that the price increase is in response to increased demand for carbon steel products, as well as the need to recover higher costs for steelmaking inputs.

Honeywell to install Experion at Outokumpu

Honeywell announced a USD 2 million contract to implement its Experion Process Knowledge System with a Process, Machine and Drives Controller at a Tornio in Finland production plant operated by Outokumpu. The project, which is designed to boost manufacturing efficiency at the plant, strengthens Honeywell’s presence in serving the steel sector.

Targeted for completion in 2009, the project is aimed at boosting the efficiency of Outokumpu’s ferrochrome converter process a key sub process in the production of stainless steel.

Experion will help automate a number of related processes including converter charging, cooling, management of exhaust gasses and blowing. Honeywell is using distributed Profibus fieldbuses in the installation of Experion, which should reduce cabling costs and enable support for the latest field devices. The contract includes basic and field planning from Honeywell, as well as configuration services.

Mr Mauri Kauppi GM of steel melting shop and hot rolling mill of Outokumpu Stainless Oy said that “We selected Honeywell for this important project because it understands our business needs and has solutions that can enhance our company’s performance. We trust Honeywell to be our partner and value their comprehensive local service and support.”

Mr Timo Saarelainen MD of Honeywell Finland said that “Our technology should deliver higher usability and better functionality to Outokumpu’s automation process which ultimately should lead to a higher quality product. This is a significant contract for us in that it both extends our long-standing relationship with Outokumpu and also builds our credentials with customers in steel manufacturing.”

Corinth 2007 turnover up by 11.9% YoY

Corinth Pipeworks announced that its Financial Year 2007 Group turnover amounted to EUR 357.5 million as compared to EUR 319.4 million in FY 2006 up by11.9% YoY. Its EBITDA stood at EUR 57.5 million as compared to EUR 41.3 million in 2006 up by 39.3% YoY. EBITDA margin formed at 16.1% of the Group's turnover as compared to 12.9% in 2006.

Substantial increase by 106% marked earnings before tax, which amounted to EUR 40.1 million as compared to EUR 19.4 million in 2006, while net after tax and minorities earnings amounted to EUR 33.9 million as compared to EUR 36.4 million in 2006.

The parent Company results also marked a corresponding course during 2007. In specific, turnover in FY 2007 amounted to EUR 340.6 million as compared to EUR 304.2 million in FY 2006. EBITDA amounted to EUR 52.9 million as compared to EUR 41.5 million in FY 2006 up by 27.2% YoY while earnings before tax reached EUR 34.9 million.

Corinth Pipeworks said that the increase of sales turnover and the high profitability are mainly attributed to
1. The higher prices achieved by Corinth Pipeworks as a result of its strategic decision to penetrate high value added market segments, the execution of projects with strict technical specifications as well as the favorable market conditions in the international energy industry
2. The ongoing improvement of productivity and operating costs

Taiwanese import price of scrap hits USD 600

It is reported that Taiwan’s import price of scrap has recently increased to hit USD 600 per tonne.

At the same time, steel billet price keeps up going as well. The highest deal price of square billet is at USD 920 per tonne.

Slab import price is at USD 880 per tonne CFR. Besides, price of pig iron is increasing as well, and the current quote price is between USD 630 to USD 660 per tonne CFR.

(Sourced from YIEH.com)

Riveco General Sider to invest in Nigeria

It is reported that Mr Graziano Serra president of Italian Riveco General Sider has declared the interest to invest in Nigeria during a visit to the Nigerian Investment Promotion Commission.

He said the company is interested in the steel sector, especially welded steel and pre insulated heating pipes used in conveying fluids. He added that the pipes will be useful against oil pipeline vandals, transportation of energy fuels and other infrastructure.

Mr Alhaji Mustafa Bello executive secretary of NIPC said the commission would co operate with the company to facilitate its registration. Mr Bello said the company’s operation is vital to Nigeria’s oil and gas sector.

US to become a major exporter of coal in 2008

It is reported that United States is all set to become major coal exporter for the first time since 1990s thanks to the vast reorganization of global coal trade. Some analyst said that US will export 7% to 8% of its coal production in 2008 up from about 5% in 2007.

According to estimates, US exports of coal grew from 49 million tonnes in 2006 to about 55 million tonnes in 2007, while domestic production increased by 1%. Exports are likely to touch 80 million tonnes in 2008. Coal executives expect this to rise to as much as 120 million tonnes in the next few years.

Meanwhile, imports of coal are decreasing gradually as producers in Colombia and Venezuela turn to markets other than the United States for higher prices. The shifts are further tightening supplies of coal in the Eastern United States, where stiffening regulations and various mine closings have limited output in recent years. UK has become a major coal importer in recent years. Meanwhile, India is building huge coal plants that will require growing imports, while Russia is using more and more coal to make natural gas available for export.

The falling dollar has contributed to US coal exports, which makes US coal cheaper on world markets. But there are longer term reasons for the world to turn to the US.

Major exporters such as South Africa, Indonesia and Vietnam are cutting back for a variety of reasons, including growing domestic needs and local power shortages. Recent flooding in Australia has cut exports, for a short while and an earthquake closed a major mine in Germany.

Japanese steel makers get higher price for special steel bar

JMB reported that Japanese integrated steel makers are getting higher price for contract price of special steel bar and wire rod for April shipment.

As per report Japanese steel makers agreed with some of contract users to increase the steel price with potential additional price hike depending on raw materials cost. The users apparently accepted the higher price to secure stable supply. The steel makers still keep negotiating with automakers and machinery makers to increase the price by JPY 20,000 to JPY 25,000 per tonne.

North American medium plate price up

North America steel manufactures are planning to increase medium plate price in May.

The move is because global raw material cost continues to keep in a high price level in recent time. As a result, two major producers Claymont and Nucor are announced to raise their price for USD 100 per tonne and USD 70 per tonne respectively.

Besides, this price increasing condition will also affect much for A36 plate price to increase to as high as USD 1,000 per short ton.

(Sourced from YIEH.com)

Rodman & Renshaw acquires Miller Mathis & Co

Rodman & Renshaw Capital Group Inc announced that it has acquired Miller Mathis & Co LLC the leading independent M&A advisor to the global steel industry.

As per release, the total consideration for the acquisition is USD 7.3 million with USD 4.35 million paid in cash at closing and the balance payable in one year. Rodman, at its election may pay up to USD 2.51 million of the deferred payment in stock. Additional USD 2.1 million of purchase prices is payable in cash or stock or a combination thereof in two years upon the achievement of significant growth targets. The acquisition is expected to be accretive to earnings in 2008.

Rodman & Renshaw Capital Group Inc operates as a full service investment bank, providing investment banking services to companies that have recurring capital needs.

Steel Technologies to integrate Mitsui's flat product business

Steel Technologies Inc has announced that it will integrate the flat rolled steel distribution business of Mitsui Steel into the Company's North American operating platform. Transaction will take place following the merger of MSI into its parent company Mitsui & Co Inc. The flat rolled business that is being transferred to Steel Technologies represents annual revenue of approximately USD 425 million.

MSI serves a variety of market segments, including the appliance, construction and automotive sectors throughout the United States and Mexico. Joining Steel Technologies' extensive operating platform with MSI's marketing expertise will strengthen Steel Technologies’ customer servicing capabilities throughout the North American Free Trade region. MSI's talented team has done an excellent job expanding the business significantly through effective marketing and management of supply chain logistics. The combination of MSI into Steel Technologies creates substantial opportunities to blend the strengths of both companies.

Mr Bradford Ray CEO of Steel Technologies said "Steel Technologies has continued to take a leadership role in the consolidation of the steel processing segment. The combination of Mi-Tech earlier this year and now the integration of MSI into Steel Technologies will increase our annual shipments, including our joint ventures, to approximately four million tons and will help push our expected annual revenues to approximately USD 1.85 billion. We continue to position our Company to provide unsurpassed service, quality and logistics to our North American customer base. The addition of MSI enables us to strengthen our team and deliver even more value to the marketplace."

Steel Technologies Inc, a wholly owned subsidiary of Mitsui & Co Inc, processes flat rolled steel to specific thickness, width, temper, finish and shape requirements for automotive, appliance, lawn and garden, office furniture, agriculture, construction, hardware, and consumer goods. Steel Technologies has 25 facilities, including its joint venture operations, located throughout the United States, Canada and Mexico.

Hannibal management to acquire company from Mitsui through ESOP

Platts reported that senior management led by Mr Blanton Bartlett president of Hannibal has acquired Hannibal Industries Inc from parent Mitsui & Co Inc through the formation of an Employee Stock Ownership Plan.

Financial considerations of the transaction were not disclosed. The executive team Hannibal under Mitsui USA's ownership will continue to run the company.

Mr Bartlett said that management plans to concentrate on its two existing lines of business and grow through the addition of new product lines and expansion into other areas of the country.

Hannibal Industries Inc founded in 1985, is a manufacturer of carbon steel tubing to customers throughout the Western United States. In 2000 the company added a Material Handling division in addition to its Steel Tube division, enabling it to quickly become the largest manufacturer of storage racks and provider of warehouse solutions west of the Rocky Mountains.

Brazilian steel output in February up by more than 8% YoY

Brazilian Steel Institute industry group said in a report that Brazil's output of raw steel rose by more than 8% YoY in February 2008, confirming a trend of hot domestic demand from the auto making and construction industries recorded in January 2008.

As per report, raw steel output totaled 2.7 million tonnes in February 2008, up from 2.5 million tonnes in February 2007. January 2008 raw steel output reached 2.97 million tonnes. Pig iron production rose by 7% YoY in February 2008 to 2.89 million tonnes.

IBS said that "In February 2008, internal sales for the steel sector were records in relation to the same months in previous years as in January 2008. Domestic sales of rolled steel soared by 28% YoY from February 2007 to reach 1.75 million tonnes. In January 2008, internal sales of rolled steel were even higher, at 1.8 million tonnes."

It said that Brazil's economic growth and falling interest rates have spurred demand for housing and durable goods like automobiles and home appliances. It added that "The growing performance of the automotive and civil construction sectors translates into a good moment for the economy as a whole."

Brazil was the world's 10th biggest steel exporter in 2006. Steel sales abroad reached 925,000 tonnes in February 2008, down from 973,000 tonnes in February 2007. Brazil exported 1 million tonnes in January 2008.

Over the past 12 months, Brazil churned out about 34.25 million tonnes of raw steel, 26.1 million tonnes of rolled steel and 36.1 million tonnes of pig iron, the IBS said.

Vale embarks on jobs drive

FT reported that the Brazilian mining group Vale is building technical schools in Brazil and placing recruitment advertisements overseas, in a further sign of the scarcity of geologists and engineers among the world’s miners in recent years as rising commodity prices have driven growth in the sector.

As per report Vale, which plans to spend USD 59 billion on expansion over the next five years, generating about 62,000 jobs of which 33,000 will be hired by the company and the rest by its suppliers and other partners. About a fifth of new staff will be recruited overseas.

As per report, from next week Vale will place recruitment advertisements in Australia, Canada, the UK and the US four of the 30 countries in which it operates outside Brazil. Vale will spend about USD 15 million on this year’s recruitment advertisements in Brazil and overseas.

But it is concentrating its efforts on building new technical colleges and developing specialist courses in partnership with higher education institutions around Brazil and at a later stage, overseas. Mr Marco Dalpozzo head of human resources of Vale said that “Vale is growing in an extremely aggressive way and it needs competent professionals that just don’t exist. Rather than fighting over them, we have decided to help train them.”

Mr Dalpozzo said that “We have to plan very carefully to define what kinds of employees we will need and we need literally to build the institutions to prepare them for the new jobs we are creating.” He said that if Vale needed 1,000 engineers at one location it would help train 3,000 to provide a pool to choose from and to share with its subcontractors.

French port union to strike on March 26th 2008

Reuters reported that France's port and dock union, part of the Confederation Generale du Travail federation, will stage a 24 hour strike on March 26 to protest a government plan to change the way the country's docks are run.

Confederation Generale du Travail union, the largest port union said that “Port workers condemn the lack of transparency.” It said that the strike is to protest against the government's failure to provide guarantees that workers and equipment at the ports won't be transferred to private entities.

The Confederation Generale du Travail is participating in talks with the port authority, employers' groups UNIM and UPACCIM and the government on a plan to change the administration of French ports. France has seven main ports, the biggest being Marseille and Le Havre.

The union has said it opposes any attempt to transfer port operations currently administered by the state to the private sector. Without a guarantee that this won't happen, the CGT has said strikes will be organized. The union said that “Those behind this fraud or bluff will be responsible for increasing problems at French ports. One shouldn't play with the lives and employment of thousands of families.''

French government on January 14th 2008 said that the government will sell container handling operations to private operators and increase spending to renovate and enlarge ports. A new law on the ports will be proposed in parliament in coming months, aimed at making the country's harbors more competitive. Mr Dominique Bussereau junior transport minister French said that “The government wants to restructure ports management so that dock operators have real and lasting control over their equipment and employees.”

New interest in finding minerals deposits in Tasmania

ABC news reported that the Tasmanian Government has interest in mineral exploration in the state is continuing to grow. As per report it has received four new applications for mineral exploration licenses.

Mr Steve Kons minister for infrastructure and resources of Tasmanian said that miners plans to search for tin and tungsten near Vickory Creek in the state's north east.

Mr Kons says Boldjet proprietry limited has applied for two licenses to conduct surveys at the Florentine River and Poatina in central Tasmania. He added that Mineral Holdings Australia wants to search for limestone and dolomite around Smithton in the North West.

Daewoo profit triples in February 2008

The world's 3rd largest shipyard, Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering Co said that profit in February 2008 almost tripled from a year earlier as it built more expensive vessels to carry consumer goods and fuel.

Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine in a statement said that net income in February 2008 rose to KRW 45.4 billion (USD 61 million) from KRW 16.5 billion in 2006. Sales climbed by 42% YoY to KRW 664.6 billion. Operating profit, or sales minus the cost of goods sold, more than quadrupled to KRW 55.2 billion in February from KRW 13.2 billion a year earlier. Margins to sales increased to 8.3% in February 2008 as compared with 2.8% in the same period in 2007.

Daewoo Shipbuilding received USD 1.26 billion in orders at the end of February, increasing its backlog to about USD 38 billion.

Shipyards in South Korea are increasing production by adding new docks and extending the length of existing ones as they work through order backlogs stretching into 2012. The country's yards won almost half of the record USD 189.8 billion that shipping lines spent on new vessels last year.

Yokohama and Kawasaki signs port agreement

It is reported that Yokohama and Kawasaki signed an agreement to integrate their respective port operations to enhance their international competitiveness.

As per report the combined container handling volume would have ranked 13th on a global scale in 2006. Under the agreement, harbor charges and procedures for port use will be unified in an effort to win over such rivals as Pusan in South Korea.

Electric car is the future – Mr Ghosn

Mr Carlos Ghosn CEO of Nissan believes that environmentally friendly electric cars will dominate the future as automakers join the fight against global warming.

Mr Ghosn said that Nissan and French alliance partner Renault are already developing its first electric car in Israel that it hopes to mass market by 2011.

However, the group is also working on other advanced vehicles including hybrid engines and hydrogen fuel cells as government policies in different parts of the world will dictate the trend for automakers.

Mr Ghosn delivering a speech hosted by the Malaysian government’s investment arm, Khazanah Nasional Bhd said that “I think the future would be zero emission cars. Particularly among urban drivers, there is a lot of appeal. We are pushing particularly this technology but we are not putting all our eggs in the same basket.”

Dongkuk Refractories announces rights issue

Dongkuk Refractories & Steel Co Ltd announced that it has agreed to issue 6,900,000 shares of its common stock through a rights issue. Its par value and offer price are KRW 1,000 and KRW 1,960, respectively.

The shares will be open for subscription for the existing shareholders from May 19th 2008 to May 20th 2008. The shares remaining unclaimed from the rights issue will be offered to public from May 22nd 2008 to May 23rd 2008. The listing date of the new shares is June 10th 2008.

Shinheung Securities Ltd will be the underwriter.

Konecrane to supply RTG to Brazil and Spain

It is reported that Konecranes has received two orders for RTG cranes from Spanish operator Terminal de Contenidors de Barcelona, SL.

The orders are for seven RTGs, of which four will be delivered to TCB Group's terminal TCP in Paranagua in Brazil and three to TCB Group's terminal TCV in Valencia in Spain.

The cranes will be delivered at the end of 2008. The value of the orders is not disclosed.

South Korean HRC in tight supply

It is reported that South Korean importer has signed a contract with one HR coil manufacturer in China, but recently the manufacturer indicated that they could only meet 30% of supply and there is no substitute resource available.

According to a market participant, the common HR coil market is in short supply and this condition will remain.

As per report China producer is now offering USD 840 to USD 870 per tonne, however, the price does not attractive for South Korea buyer. It is difficult for importers to accept the price more than USD 840 per tonne.

(Sourced from YIEH.com)

Singapore Port’s handling in 2 months up by 12% YoY

The Port of Singapore Authority reported a 12% YoY increase in February 2008 to 2.18 million TEU against February 2007's throughput of 2.1 million TEU.

According to ShedNet, In January to February 2008 Singapore handled 4.63 million TEU up by 12% YoY from 4.14 million TEU.

Crown Prince inaugurates RAK Steel in RAK

Shaikh Saud bin Saqr Al Qasimi Crown Prince and Deputy Ruler of Ras Al Khaimah officially inaugurated the USD 50 million RAK Steel factory in Al Ghail, Ras Al Khaimah.

An official statement said "The establishment of RAK Steel comes at a time when the demand for steel is at an all time high, thanks to the continued construction boom in the UAE and the Middle East region.”

Dr Khater Massaad CEO of Rakia said "RAK Steel, which commenced commercial production last month, will become the second largest producer of rebars in the UAE, and will effectively cater to the ever growing demand for steel in the region."

He added that "RAK Steel's sophisticated quality control laboratory and modern systems ensure that all quality standards are consistently met. The quality of the company's rebars has already received approval from leading consultants, contractors and Dubai Municipality and we are confident of significantly growing our client base across the country in the shortest possible time."

He said the Gulf region has one of the highest per capita consumption levels of steel products in the world; at about 440 kilos, it is far higher than the world average of 182 kilos.

RAK Steel, a joint venture with Ras Al Khaimah Investment Authority is an energy efficient, environment friendly mill that will manufacture 500,000 tonnes of deformed steel reinforcement bars per year. RAK Steel produces rebars from 8mm to 40mm diameter in variable lengths of 6 to 18 meters to both British and American standards. It uses the Temperit process for manufacturing the rebars.

FBR allows sales tax refund on export of steel products

Daily Times reported that Pakistan’s Federal Board of Revenue has allowed sales tax refund, within thirty days, paid on raw materials used in manufacturing of steel products exported from the country and announced that the benefit of this would be available to the steel makers and re rollers with effect from July 1st 2007.

Notification SRO 308(I)/2008 prescribes rate of refund to steel melters and steel re rollers against exports. Since, steel melters and re-rollers operate under special procedure whereby the tax on the basis of electricity consumption is collected and deposited by WAPDA/KESC. The rates prescribed in SRO include the tax collected by WAPDA/ KESC and other taxes paid on inputs.

On export of ingots or billets, other than imported or of Pakistan Steel Mills and Peoples Steel Mills, a repayment of PKR 4,100 per metric tonne would be made. The export of mild steel re-rolled products manufactured from ingots and billets, other than imported or of Pakistan Steel Mills and Peoples Steel Mills, would attract sales tax repayment of PKR 4,717 per metric tonne. Similarly, mild steel re-rolled products manufactured from imported ingots or billets of Pakistan Steel Mills and Peoples Steel Mills would get PKR 5,460 per metric tonne as sales tax repayment.

The repayment under this notification shall be admissible subject to the fulfillment of the following conditions; the sales tax liability in respect of exported goods has been discharged to the extent as prescribed under rules 58H and 58Ha of the Sales Tax Special Procedures Rules, 2007. The exporter shall file claim for repayment of sales tax to the concerned Collector of Sales Tax and Federal Excise for the repayment on monthly basis, as and if due, within a period of six months after the end of the tax period in which the goods were exported.

Saudi Arab sets expansion plans for water projects

Khaleej Times reported that Saudi Arabia is set to expand the privatization of its desalination and wastewater treatment sector to cover more cities in the country. The move follows the creation of the National Water Company earlier this year to oversee the privatization process, which aims to improve water services in Saudi Arabia and save dwindling supplies.

National Water Company will initially target the privatization of water projects in 4 cities, including Jeddah, Madinah and Riyadh.

Mr Loay Al Musallam head of privatization team and deputy minister of planning and development at ministry of water & electricity said that "Within the next 3 years, we hope to cover most major cities in Saudi Arabia. I am confident that we can create a leading water utilities service in the region." He added that desalination and wastewater treatment projects are implemented either as a build operate transfer or private public partnership.

Mr Al Musallam said that "Having both schemes gives us the ability to attract different types of bidders. We issue a management contract for the distribution of water and wastewater collection, one for construction of the plant and another for the sales promotion. The way in which we have built these contracts gives us the confidence that our targets will be met in collaboration with the private sector."

The process of privatizing Saudi Arabia's water projects began in November 2005, when a consortium of Saudi and Malaysian companies was awarded a SAR 9.1 billion contract to build the Shuaiba 3 desalination plant.

USD 3.26 billion worth of jobs awarded by DEWA

Dubai Electricity & Water Authority has awarded 6 contracts worth a combined USD 3.26 billion for the construction of power and desalination plants.

1) The first contract, worth USD 1.68 billion, was awarded to South Korea's Doosan Heavy Industries & Construction Company on a turnkey basis for the construction of the 'M Station' power generation plant in Jebel Ali. It will be completed by June 2010.

2) The second contract, worth USD 1.1 billion, was awarded to Italy's Fisia Italimpianti, also on a turnkey basis, for the construction of a desalination plant, which will produce 140 gallons of treated water a day. The target completion date is also June 2010.
3) The third contract was awarded to Dubai's Mammut Group for the construction of phases 4, 5 and 6 of the Mushrif reservoir with a total capacity of 100 gallons a day. The contract is valued at USD 169 million and the project will be completed by April 2009.

4) The fourth contract, worth USD 42.2 million, was awarded to Oman's Gulf Petrochemical Services and is for a 20 inch diesel fuel oil pipeline from Jebel Ali Free Zone to Awir Power Station. It is to be completed by January 2009.

5) The fifth contract was awarded to France's Areva for two 400/132kV substations at Barsha and Nad Al Sheba for a cost of USD 222 million and is to be completed by December 2009.

6) The sixth contract, worth USD 122 million, was awarded to Japan's Mitsubishi Electric Corporation for a 400/132kV substation, to be completed by February 2010.

UAE cement imports in 2007 sure by 73.6% YoY

According to state figures, Dubai imported 2.96 million tonnes of cement in 2007 up by 73.6% YoY as the Gulf region was gripped by a construction boom fuelled by rocketing oil prices.

Dubai Port said that in 2006 cement imports into the emirate rose to 1.704 million tonnes, while in 2005 imports stood at 600,000 tonnes. It added that the total value of Dubai’s cement imports during 2007 was around AED 672 million as compared to AED 374 million in 2006.

Dubai World said that China was the biggest exporter of cement to Dubai in 2007, with 1.9 million tonnes amounting to AED 399 million, followed by India with 553,000 tonnes worth AED 134 million. It added that the other top cement trading partners in 2007 were Pakistan with 255,000 tonnes worth AED 71 million, Thailand with 148,000 tonnes worth AED 33 million and Indonesia with 71,000 tonnes worth AED 20.7 million.

Mr Nassim al Mehairi of Dubai World said that "Cement imports have soared during the past 3 years as a result of the unprecedented construction activities here that accompanied the overall economic boom in the UAE and the region."

Container scanner installed at Karachi ICD

Shipping Gazette reported that Pakistan’s first container scanner has been installed at the Pakistan International Container Terminal at Karachi.

The report added that it is the only container terminal in Pakistan to have a container scanner that complies with the US government norms. The installation of the scanner, which is also designed to detect contraband and explosives, is to facilitate trade flows by reducing the time taken to check the contents of a box.

Another push to improve cargo clearance efficiency and to reduce the dwell time of cargo at ports comes with the introduction of the Pakistan automated customs clearance system by customs authorities to facilitate the e clearance of cargo.

Saudi Arab bans labor from Bangladesh

Gulf News reported that Saudi Arabia will no longer hire Bangladeshi workers in the housing and agriculture sectors.

Mr Gazi Al-Gosaibi labor minister of Saudi Arab was quoted by Gulf News as saying that that “The decision was taken in view of the fact that the quota fixed for Bangladeshi workers in the kingdom was over.”

Mr Al-Gosaibi added that workers from Bangladesh would be restricted to the medical and engineering fields. He said “There will be an exception for the jobs in the maintenance and cleaning sectors with the condition that their percentage in all the sectors should not exceed 20%,”

Bangladesh announced a new minimum wage for unskilled workers in Saudi Arabia earlier this month, saying it would not approve visas for workers earning less than SAR 550 per month.

Studies on Red Sea to Dead Sea canal project to start soon

The Jordan Times reported that an economic feasibility study and environmental assessment of the USD 2.4 billion Red Sea Dead Sea Water Conveyance Project is scheduled to start within 3 weeks. It may be noted that a total of 6 companies from the US, Germany, Canada, France and Italy were pre qualified to carry out the feasibility study in cooperation with local consultants. 4 other firms from the US, the Netherlands, Italy and the UK were shortlisted for conducting the environmental assessment.

Mr Musa Jamaini secretary general of Jordan Valley Authority said that the French company Coyne Et Bellier has won the tender to carry out the feasibility probe while the British company Environmental Resources Management, will implement the environmental and social assessment of the mega multipurpose project.

Mr Jamaini said that "We are now working on preparing the agreements to be signed with the 2 companies and within 3 weeks, we will give them the go ahead to commence on the studies." He added that the feasibility study and the environmental assessment were scheduled to be completed in 2 years, however, due to the extreme importance of the project, there are plans to reduce the period to 18 months.

The Red Dead Canal Project is part of international efforts to save the Dead Sea, which has been dropping at the rate of one meter per year, largely due to the diversion of water from the Jordan River for agricultural and industrial use. During the past 20 years alone, it has plunged more than 30 meters, with experts warning that it could dry up within 50 years. Due to the water level drop, the sea's surface area has shrunk by about 33% over the last 55 years with an average annual inflow decrease from 1,200 million cubic meters to around 250 million cubic meters of water.

The environment focused project seeks to pump 1 billion cubic meters annually with the aim of raising the water levels in the shrinking lake from 408 meters below sea level to 315 meters.

The project, which will alleviate pressure on renewable and nonrenewable water resources in the region by providing about 850mcm of potable water annually, entails the construction of a 200 kilometer canal from Aqaba on the Red Sea to the Dead Sea. The canal, to be built along the border with Israel in Wadi Araba, will generate electricity as water will be drawn from the Red Sea, and then released into the Dead Sea, which lies 400 meters below sea level. Additional advantages in the secondary stage will include a hydroelectric power generating project and a desalination plant expected to produce 850mcm of potable water to be divided between Jordan, Israel and the Palestinian Authority.

Outdated mining system to be replaced in Pakistan – Report

Daily Times quoted Mr Abbas Ali Shah an official of Sindh Coal Authority as saying that Pakistan can save millions of dollars on import of coal if outdated system of mining is abolished as during mining process, around 50% product goes waste.

Mr Shah said that Thar coalmines would take another 5 to 6 years to give production subject to the speedy work and development of infrastructure on modern mining system.

Mr Shah said that Lakhra mines were providing around 2.5 million tonne of coal, which was meeting about 45% domestic needs. The cement and other industrial sectors import around 3.5 million tonne of coal from South Africa, Indonesia and Australia.

The resource base of Balochistan’s coal stands at 125 million tonnes compared to 185 billion tonnes of whole Pakistan. The coal field of Chamalong Bahlol which is recently being opened for exploration and mining through an agreement signed between Marri and Luni tribes with the joint efforts of federal and Balochistan governments is considered to be the biggest coal field of Asia. Proper and detailed exploration, which is in progress, would prove that the actual coal reserves in Balochistan are much more than 125 million tonne.

UAE plans USD 4.4 billion overhaul

Emirates news agency WAM reported that UAE is to spend AED 16 billion on infrastructure projects in the Northern Emirates.

Mr Sheikh Hamdan UAE minister of public works said that the allocation, ordered by President Mr Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan, will be used to fund the construction of road networks, new housing communities, drainage network and other projects.

Mr Hamdan said that "We undertook a comprehensive study and we have now come up with integrated solutions to existing problems in these areas. With this allocation, the quality of our people in some outlying areas will be significantly improved."

The move comes following a study on the needs of the Northern emirates, which include Ajman, Fujairah, Ras Al Kaimah, Sharjah and Umm Al Qaiwain, said Sheikh Hamdan bin Mubarak Al Nahyan.

Czech keen to invest in Pakistan’s power sector – Report

Mr Iqbal Ahmad acting secretary of Board of Investment, while talking to Mr Shafqat Saeed Piracha VP of Lahore Chamber of Commerce & Industry said that Czech Republic has huge business opportunities for potential Pakistani businessmen in sectors like power, textile, pharmaceutical, leather and construction and Czech businessmen are ready to initiate JVs with their Pakistani counterparts for mutual benefit.

Mr Iqbal Ahmad, who had recently returned from a 4 day visit to the Czech Republic, said that Czech businessmen are very serious in doing business in Pakistan, particularly in the power sector. He added that the Board of Investment had constituted a Czech specific task force to prepare a set of recommendations for maximum participation of the private sector.

He said that the existing volume of trade between Pakistan and Czech Republic needed special attention and frequent exchange of delegations. He added that lack of information was coming in the way of bilateral trade and the chambers of commerce of both countries should play their role in that regard.

Mr Ahmed said that "The economic growth achieved by Pakistan in recent years had impressed the manufacturers and investors in the Czech Republic and they are now considering Pakistan as the best place for investment." He added that there was a need to work together in order to identify possible fields of cooperation and to provide proper information for business communities of both sides.

Meanwhile, Mr Saeed Piracha said that the current level of trade between Pakistan and the Czech Republic needed more concrete steps on both sides, foremost among them was exchange of information. In order to bridge the information gap, he said, it was necessary that the chambers of commerce of both countries were involved and delegations organized on reciprocal basis, besides arranging single country exhibitions. He added that currently, the two countries are in the process of signing a bilateral investment treaty and an agreement for avoidance of double taxation.

Non oil trade between Dubai and China in 2007 up by 47% YoY

Dubai World said that non oil trade between Dubai and China has increased by 47% YoY in 2007 to reach AED 71.2 billion.

Dubai World said that China was the emirate's second biggest trading partner in 2007 for the third year running. It added that China was the biggest importer of goods into Dubai in 2007, worth AED 69.9 billion, while it was the emirate's 12th biggest export destination, worth AED 661.2 million.

Mr Sultan Ahmed bin Sulayem chairman of Dubai World said that "China and Dubai have excellent bilateral relations. China is a major trading partner for Dubai and we give high importance to further strengthening the relationship between the 2 countries."

Dubai World said that non oil trade between the two commercial hubs has been steadily increasing over the past 5 years. Trade grew by 37.5% YoY in 2004, 30.7% YoY in 2005 and 35.2% YoY in 2006.

Private power plants to produce expensive electricity in Pakistan

Daily Times reported that Pakistan will have most expensive electric power when the new independent power plants set up by the private sector would come into operation within 2 years.

Sources in water & power ministry said that previous government had agreed and finalized agreements with new independent power producers on much higher tariff for thermal power generation. It added that government has made agreement with IPPs to produce 12,000 MW thermal power on high tariff of 12 cents per Kwh to 14 Cents Kwh.

In the first phase, 15 IPP plants would be set up to generate 2,868 MW power by 2009-10. The government has granted the 12 cents per Kwh to 14 cents per Kwh to these IPPs. This tariff has been determined based on PKR 25,500 per tonne furnace oil price and if the price of furnace oil shoots up, the tariff would automatically go up putting additional burden on the consumers.

As per report, higher rates would also cause increase of many fold in the cost of production especially for the export oriented industries like textile and other processing industries, making them uncompetitive in the world markets. In this way, the masses would be facing higher rates of products also in the country too.

Jordan Petroleum to establish 4 companies in energy field

Jordan Times reported that the general assembly of Jordan Petroleum Refinery Company has endorsed board recommendations to establish a group of companies.

During an extraordinary meeting presided over by Mr Adel Qdah chairman of the board, the assembly approved recommendations stipulating that the Jordan Petroleum Refinery Company and the government will co found a distribution and transport company that will be fully owned by the JPRC, in addition to another 3 companies specializing in liquefied gas, mineral oils and logistics.

The assembly also authorized the board to decide on the capital of these companies and to form any additional companies if deemed necessary. The decision follows the assembly's endorsement of the settlement signed between Jordan Petroleum Refinery Company's board and the government on February 25th 2008 to end its 50 year monopoly of the market.

Iraq may allocate USD 2.5 billion to boost its oil output

Iraq Directory quoted an Iraqi government official as saying that Iraq may pay USD 2.5 billion for 5 major oil companies to boost oil output by nearly 25%.

According to the official, Baghdad will sign technical support contracts with British Petroleum, Royal Dutch Shell, Exxon Mobil, Chevron and Total to add 500,000 barrels per day to Iraq’s current production of 2.27 million barrels per day.

More than 100 companies registered themselves to compete for oil exploration and to win contracts services to assist in the development of Iraq's reserves, which are the third largest reserves in the world.

Chinese CRC export price to move up further

According to Mysteel, export price for Chinese cold rolled steel coil is going to see another jump in the coming weeks as there is strong likelihood that export offers would increase by additional USD 50 per tonne to USD 70 per tonne in April or May 2008.

Expected increase in Chinese domestic market prices and the robust overseas demand are believed to be the major driver for the further rise in export quotations.

On Shanghai market, 1.0mm CR sheet by Anshan Steel is being quoted at CNY 6530 per tonne, 1.2mm to 2.0mm CR sheet is quoted at CNY 6400 per tonne. 1.0mm CR coil by Maanshan Steel goes at CNY 6350 pet tonne to CNY 6380 per tonne.

Mysteel believes that if we take price for 1.0mm CR sheet by benchmark, the next target would be CNY 6800 per tonne or even CNY 7000 per tonne as long as it remains above CNY 6400 per tonne.

Steel makers indicate that allocation for April production has already been over, even at the price of USD 960 per tonne FOB. Most producers would announce offer for May production in late March or early April. At the same time, some producers have started to offer in Euro rather than USD so as to hedge the risk of faster CNY appreciation over the greenback.

(Sourced from MySteel.net)

Xindia Steel lays foundation stone in India

It is reported that Xindia Steels Ltd, the first Chinese funded steel enterprise in India, laid down its foundation recently.

Founded jointly by China's Xinxing Pipes Group, China Minmetals Corporation and three other Indian companies, Xindia is held 55% by Chinese companies and 45% by its Indian partners. Meanwhile, Xinxing Pipes Group remains Xindia's largest shareholder.

Xindia will set up a steel plant with a 2.5 million tonnes annual production capacity. The steel plant will also set up a 6 million tonnes pellet plant.

JFE and Marubeni-Itochu to invest in Hebei based JV

It is reported that JFE and Marubeni-Itochu Steel Inc have declared their intent to invest JPY 2 billion in their JV based in Hebei Province for constructing pressing and welding line, processing mill and cutting mill etc and increasing the capacity 66% by summer 2009 to meet the booming demand as a result of large energy consumption.

The Bohai NKK Drill Pipe Co Ltd was jointly established by China Petroleum Materials Equipment General Company, North China Petroleum Management Bureau, NKK, Marubeni-Itochu Steel Inc and Mitsubishi in December 1995.

By summer of 2009, the capacity is schedule to increase to 30,000 tonnes from present 18,000 tonnes. Besides, JFE also said to extend the JV contract by ten years to December 2017.

Baosteel Group to create iron & steel base in Zhanjiang

It is reported that Shanghai Baosteel Group Corporation, one of China's leading steelmakers has recently been approved to build an iron and steel base in the southern Chinese city of Zhanjiang, Guangdong Province, with a CNY 60 billion investment.

Giving its approval to the company's construction scheme on March 17th 2008, the National Development and Reform Commission expects to better improve China's iron and steel industrial structure and layout, eliminate the inefficient production capacity and help domestic steelmakers sharpen their competitive edges.

People with the direct knowledge of the matter said the Zhanjiang located projects will exert all its strength to producing high end iron and steel, with an annual production capacity of more than 10 million tonnes or 20 million tonnes, and is predicted to be completed in 2010.

Meanwhile, the NDRC allowed Baosteel Group to acquire and integrate Guangdong Shaoguan Iron and Steel Group Co, Ltd and Guangzhou Iron & Steel Group Company Ltd two small and medium sized steel companies lying in Guangdong, before building its Zhanjiang iron and steel base.

The buyer will establish a new affiliate specializing in steel production in Guangzhou, capital city of Guangdong Province, with investment in cash. In addition, both Shaoguan Iron and Steel and Guangzhou Iron & Steel are to pour their net assets into the newly founded venture.

China may raise tariff to curb steel export in 2008

Mr Luo Bingsheng vice chairman of China Iron and Steel Association said China may raise tariff to rein in export of iron and steel products this year.

He said China's macro regulation continues to take effect in 2008 and is likely to be tightened in case of export rebound in iron and steel products.

Mr Wu Xichun with CISA said the export tariff for steel billets will double to combat export rebound though the export of steel billets is zero in February.

China exported 7.25 million tonnes of iron and steel products in the first two months of 2008 down by 17.2%. The export of steel billets came to 80,000 tonnes down by 92.6%.

China is expected to export 48 million tonnes of iron and steel products and 1.5 million tonnes of steel billets equaling to 52 million tons of crude steel this year down by 27% from 2007.

WISCO high strength steel gets approval for Europe

It is reported that WISCO’ high strength structural steel S690QL has obtained the pass to European market, certified by Germanischer Lloyd and the first batch of 200 tonnes orders are being shipped to Belgium.

As per report technicians of Germanischer Lloyd tested Wuhan Steel's products and found the size, surface and machinery performances are 100% qualified.

High strength structural steel S690QL has the largest intensity among products WISCO has exported. It's reportedly able to endure a tension double or triple of that for the common steel plate.

Guanggang Group plans to close down 3.5 million tonnes of capacity

It is reported that Guangzhou Iron & Steel Group which lies in province Guangdong, South China plans to close down 3.5million tonnes of capacity.

According to request from China National Development & Reform Commission, province Guangdong would eliminate 10 million tonnes of outdated steelmaking capacity along with the construction of Zhanjiang Steel Project.

As per report 2.5 million tonnes capacity in Baietan in Guangzhou and 1 million tonnes of capacity in Xinshi at present would be closed down, while Zhujiang Steel Company under Guanggang Group and Nansha CR Project with a capacity of 1.8 million tonnes per year would be reserved.

Iron ore imports through Guangxi in 2 months up by 38% YoY

It is reported that Iron ore imports through Guangxi amounted to 1.55 million tonnes during the first two months of this year valued at USD 227 million up by 38.1% YoY and 210% YoY respectively compared with last year.

According to statistics from customs, India contributed 590,000 tonnes up by 61.3%, Brazil, 308,000 tonnes up by 29.6%, Australia, 239,000 tons down by 15.6% and Vietnam 146,000 tonnes up by 28.8%. The four countries mentioned here provided 82.8% of total imports.

Huadian to buy up to 142 wind turbines

Reuters reported that China Huadian Corp, one of the country's five big power generators has agreed to purchase up to 142 wind turbines worth CNY 1.4 billion from China South Locomotive and Rolling Stock Industry Corp under a wind power cooperation pact.

Mr Fang Yi an official at Huadian's alternative energy development subsidiary said in the initial phase of the deal, Huadian will install 20 turbines this year with a combined generating capacity of 36.3 megawatts at a wind farm in the central Chinese province of Hunan.

Mr Fang said China South Locomotive, a state owned railway equipment manufacturer, will continue supplying additional turbines if Huadian is satisfied with the performance of the initial group.

China had 4.03 GW of wind power capacity as of late 2007, accounting for less than 0.6% of its total power generating capacity. Coal accounts for 80% of China's electric power generation. China, keen to boost the use of clean energy and reduce its reliance on highly polluting coal, last week raised its target for installed wind power capacity to 10 gigawatts by 2010 from its previous plan of 5 GW.

Tianjin Port 2007 net profit up by 16.6% YoY

China Knowledge reported that Tianjin Port Co’s, the operator of China's second largest port by market value, net profit in 2007 went up by 16.6% YoY.

Tianjin Port Co in its annual earning report said that its net profit climbed to CNY 600 million last year as compared with CNY 515 million in 2006. Operating revenue aggregated CNY 2.93 billion up by 14.63% YoY.

The Shanghai listed company expects cargo throughput to reach 158.6 million tonnes this year, with operating revenues keeping the similar growth as last year to hit CNY 3.35 billion.

China to spend USD 5.9 billion on environment

Reuters reported that China has earmarked CNY 41.8 billion to fund environmental protection and energy saving projects this year.
The investments underscore the growing political emphasis on sustainable development in a country with some of the world's most polluted air and rivers.

China finance ministry said the funds would be used to scrap obsolete capacity, improve sewerage in central and western China and clean up several rivers across the country. It also said that China would consider setting up a pay to pollute regime and a trading system for pollution quotas.

In 2006, China set a goal of cutting energy intensity, or the amount of energy needed to produce each USD 1 of output by 20% by 2010, but it has already fallen well behind schedule. Energy intensity fell 1.33% in 2006 and 3% in 2007.

Noble inks agreement with a new billet mill in Azerbaijan

It is reported that Hong Kong Noble Group had concluded a pact on purchase of the steel products from Dashkesan Filizsafla Shdirma’s Ganja Steelmaking Complex newly founded in Azerbaijan. On Mar 3rd, they also held the formal signing ceremony on it.

Noble Group disclosed that its steel products can be used for making quality petroleum pipelines, deformed bar and other construction steel products.

Noble revealed that DFS is a mining company and has verified iron ore reserves of around 270 million tonnes.

Ganja plans an ore selection mill, a pellet mill, a direct reduction iron mill and an electric are furnace steel mill. BHP Paribas will provide loans for this project which is predicted to cost USD 800 million during the construction period from 2008 to 2011. Ganja’s facilities would be supplied by Techint Industrial Technologies and Danieli.

Zlatoust increases steel production in 2 months by 3.8% YoY

It is reported that ESTAR Group’s Chelyabinsk region based Zlatoust Metallurgical Plant produced 103,816 tonnes of steel and 78,148 tonnes of roll during January to February of 2008.

In tonnes

Its shipments in January 2008 amounted to 40,000 tonnes and in February 2008 34,458 tonnes. In the first 2 months of 2007 products shipment amounted to 70,367 tonnes up by 5.8% YoY. January 2008 can be considered an absolute record: the consumers were shipped over 40,000 tonnes of products. It had never reached such production rate before, especially in the beginning of the year.

JSC Zlatoust Metallurgical Plant was created in December 2003 on the basis of JSC Zlatoust Metallurgical Complex assets in the framework of business restructuring. The enterprise produces over 1,000 steel grades and alloys for the military-industrial complex, chemical and aviation industry.

MMK to pay RUB 0.502 dividends for 2007

It is reported that the board of Magnitogorsk Iron and Steel Works has recommended a 2007 dividend of RUB 0.502 per share.

MMK said its board of directors made the decision to recommend the dividend at an annual general meeting on Friday.

MMK boosted net profit 24.3% to USD 1.77 billion last year after selling more steel at higher prices. The company has previously said dividend payouts for 2007 would amount to 25% of net profit.

Norilsk should be the core to mining merger in Russia

Reuters cited Mr Denis Morozov CEO of Norilsk Nickel as saying that Norilsk Nickel should be at the core of any potential merger with one or more privately owned Russian miners.

Mr Denis Morozov said Norilsk is in the early stages of evaluating a merger proposal from Metalloinvest, the iron ore and steel firm controlled by billionaire Mr Alisher Usmanov, but had received no concrete proposal from United Company RUSAL.

He said "Theoretically, anything is possible. But in my view, if such deals are possible, then it would only be on the base of Norilsk Nickel.”

He added that "This creates unpredictability and potential risks, most of all for our minority shareholders."

Mr Morozov said in the Kommersant interview that UC RUSAL had yet to become a shareholder in Norilsk. He said "I can not comment on RUSAL's plans because we have not received any proposals from this company. It's a private company, so we do not have sufficient information to evaluate the merit of any possible combination."

He said Norilsk's management would evaluate Metalloinvest with the help of an external consultant. He added that "We can't say when exactly this process will be completed, because the exchange of information only began a short time ago."

NLMK separates IT function and appoints new VP

NLMK announces the separation of the Company’s IT implementation function into a new line of corporate development. To this end, the position of Information Technology Vice President has been introduced.

On March 2nd 2007 Mr Vadim Urias was appointed as NLMK’s IT Vice President. Mr Urias will lead the creation and management of common IT policies across the NLMK Group. NLMK’s plans envisage the implementation of a corporate ERP system.

Mr Alexey Lapshin president of NLMK’s said that the appointment as follows ”NLMK has enjoyed rapid development due to the acquisition of high quality assets and implementation of the Technical Upgrade Program. Managing the group is becoming more complicated as the Company faces new challenges including the smooth integration of new units into the Group’s information management system. He said I am sure that making information technology an important area of activity and appointing Mr Vadim Urias will allow us to efficiently achieve the goals we have set.

Belarus to pay USD 128 for gas

Reuters quoted an Economic Development and Trade Ministry official as saying that Russia will sell gas to Belarus at USD 128 per 1,000 cubic meters in the second quarter of 2008 up from USD 119 in the first quarter.

Mr Andrei Belousov deputy economic development and trade minister told reporters in Minsk that the price of natural gas would be calculated according to the same formula the two countries were using in the first quarter. He said "The contracts were signed in December 2006. All the issues arising should be solved according to the contracts."

According to the contracts, the price for Russian gas to Belarus is set at 67% of the average price of gas to Europe in 2008. The contracts also stipulate that the price is supposed to increase to 80% of the European price in 2009 and to 100% in 2011.

Moscow raised gas prices for Belarus by USD 19 per 1,000 cubic meters starting this year from USD 100 in 2007, although government sources in Minsk have said Gazprom was seeking an increase of up to 60%. Gazprom traditionally charged Minsk the lowest price of its foreign customers, and any signs of Gazprom's intention to raise prices were severely opposed by Mr Alexander Lukashenko president of Belarussia.

TGK-13 posts USD 45 million loss as costs surge

Reuters reported that Russian power producer TGK-13 reported a 2007 net loss of RUB 1.074 billion as rising costs wiped out a 24% YoY increase in revenue to RUB 12.4 billion. TGK-13's operating costs grew 18% YoY as compared with 2006 reaching RUB 13.78 billion.

Mr Oleg Salkov general director of TGK-13 said "The significant income growth from the sale of power on the unregulated market has done well to highlight the company is able to gain an advantage from the long-term liberalization of the power sector."

Margins in the Russian electricity sector are weighed down by state regulated prices for power, which are gradually being set free over the next four years. Last year, power producers were allowed to sell only a small fraction of their output on the liberalized wholesale market, where prices are not controlled.

At the same time as liberalizing power prices, however, the government is also deregulating the domestic price of natural gas, the main fuel used in Russia's power plants. That means rising fuel costs are canceling out much of the income from the liberalized sale of power.

Russia to inject more funds in economy for 7% GDP growth in 2008

RIA Novosti reported that Russia's banks and monetary authorities will boost loans to the economy by 35% YoY to 40% YoY in 2008 to ensure 7% GDP growth this year.

Mr Alexei Kudrin said at a meeting of the Russian president with the Cabinet that "We discussed measures together with the banking community and the Central Bank that will be required and used this year to maintain the banking sector's liquidity, and to ensure the necessary rates of the Russian economy's crediting and support for economic growth."

Mr Kudrin said in February that Russia's GDP could grow by 7% in 2008 instead of the planned 6.6%.

Amid a global liquidity crunch, Russian monetary and financial authorities are seeking to pump more money into the economy to maintain the rapid growth seen over the past few years.

RUB 8 billion to be invested into Krasnoyarsk cement plant

FIS reported that Krasnoyarsk Cement Plant is currently implementing the project to set up 'dry' cement production to cut production costs by 20% and energy and fuel consumption to 115 kilogram from 250 kilogram per one tonne of clinker. It is worth noting that dry cement technology was successfully developed in Germany.

Investments into line modernization will total RUB 8 billion. The funds will be used to purchase mill, furnace and reducer equipment. Construction and assembling will cost RUB 2 billion. The project is to be completed by the end of 2009. The dry cement line will make 1.3 million tonnes per annum and raise the plant's total capacities to 2 million tonnes.

Central Asian producers to agree for 2009 gas contracts in a month

Interfax reported that Central Asian gas producers plan to conclude gas contracts for 2009 with Gazprom within the month.

A source in the Kazakh government told Interfax that "New export prices on Central Asian gas will be announced in the near future. Within the month a contract with Gazprom will be signed. He said so far the sides have been discussing one year contracts.”

It was reported last week that the heads of the gas production companies in Turkmenistan, Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan announced they would raise prices on the gas they export to the levels prevailing in Europe.

Gazprom board of directors to meet on March 26th 2008

A regular meeting of the Gazprom Board of Directors will take place on March 26th 2008 at 3:00PM Moscow time. The meeting agenda is scheduled to include the following items:

1. On the progress with and provisional results of the conclusion of long term agreements for gas supply to Russian consumers over 2008 to 2012
2. On Gazprom’s strategy for liquefied natural gas production and supply
3. On stock exchange trading in natural gas
4. On Gazprom’s development strategy for gas chemicals and processing facilities
5. On the creation of a venture fund for innovative technologies.