Steel output to surpass requirements by 2011-12 – Mr Paswan

Mr Ram Vilas Paswan union steel minister said that steel production in India will achieve 124 million tonnes of steel capacity by 2011-12, which would be more than the domestic requirement leading to relenting pressure on its alloy prices. He added that India's requirement would be around 110 million tonnes at that point of time.

The annual demand for steel in India has been rising by about 13% but production is growing by over 6%. India's crude steel production was 53.9 million tonnes in 2007-08 fiscal and out of it about 5 million tonnes were exported. India imported nearly 7 million tonnes of steel.

SAIL ISP awards 2 contracts to Nagarjuna Constructions

Nagarjuna Construction Company Limited announced that it has secured three orders worth INR 575 crore.

The first order worth INR 284.64 crore is secured from Steel Authority of India Limited’s IISCO Steel Plant for structural works for basic oxygen furnace, continuous casting plant and lime & dolomite plant to be completed over a period of 24 months.

The second order worth INR 197.19 crore is also from SAIL ISP for structural works for re heating furnace and rolling mills to be completed over a period of 20 months.

JSW Steel to set up rebar mill in Georgia

JSW Steel decided to enter into a JV for setting up a steel plant for manufacturing of TMT bars in Georgia. The plant will cater to the needs of construction industry in Eastern European countries mainly in Georgia, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Russia and former CIS Countries.

The board of director of JSW Steel has decided to invest in Geo Steel LLC, to the extent of 49% of equity. Geo Steel LLC is incorporated under the laws of Georgia and is setting up a steel rolling mill facility in Georgia with an initial capacity of 175,000 tonnes per annum of rebars.

The estimated project cost is USD 42 million, which is proposed to be financed by way of debt of USD 28 million and the balance through equity of USD 14 million.

Out of the total equity capital of USD 14 million required for setting up of the project, JSW Steel will invest USD 6.86 million through its wholly owned subsidiary JSW Steel (Netherlands) BV comprising 49% of the equity. The remaining 51% will be funded by JV partner.

TATA Steel forms JV with Jasper Industries for power plant in Orissa

TATA Steel Ltd announced that it along with and its wholly owned subsidiary, Rawmet Ferrous Industries Ltd have entered into a Share Subscription Agreement and Shareholders' Agreement with Jasper Industries Pvt Ltd to set up a coal based power plant of 2 X 67.5 MW capacity at Anantpur Village near Cuttack in Orissa, subject to fulfillment of certain conditions.

Pursuant to the Shareholders' Agreement, TATA Steel and Rawmet together will hold 26% and Jasper Industries will hold 74% of the stake of the equity in JV named Bhubaneshwar Power Pvt Ltd.

JSPL starts 3rd unit of power plant

Jindal Steel & Power Ltd announced that its subsidiary Jindal Power Ltd has informed that third unit of 250 MW capacity has started generation of power for commercial purposes from June 15th 2008.

With the commissioning of this Unit, JPL has now power generation capacity of 750 MW. Last unit of 250 MW is in the final stage of implementation and the total project of 1000 MW is likely to be operational by July, 2008.

TN may allot land for TATA Steel titanium project

BS reported that Tamil Nadu government has agreed to help TATA Steel procure nearly 10,000 acres of land for its INR 2,500 crore titanium dioxide project in Tuticorin district.

This is the first time the state government has officially said it will get involved in the land acquisition process for TATA Steel's ambitious project, which has been on paper for nearly a year.

Senior government officials said that though the state would not directly buy large tracts of land on behalf of the steel major, it would ensure that the acquisition process was smooth for TATA Steel to do so on its own. They added that "We have already instructed district collectors and other revenue officials to make sure that clear title deeds were made available for the company to approach legitimate land owners. We will also help TATA Steel by buying small bits of land to let them aggregate continuous land area of 10,000 acres for mining."

TATA Steel had earlier indicated that it may look at alternative locations like Orissa and Andhra Pradesh to relocate the project owing to delays over land acquisition. A TATA Steel official, however, said that such a drastic move would be taken only after extensive negotiations with the Tamil Nadu government. He added that "We had committed ourselves to bringing this project to Tamil Nadu and will try to honor it as much as we can."

The land acquisition process was also caught in political crossfire as powerful local interests in Tuticorin had objected to the project with some even claiming that TATA Steel was trying to buy agricultural land. The state government had then dismissed these charges and said that less than 4% of the land area where TATA Steel proposed to mine came under agriculture. The state continues to support this stance.

It may be noted that TATA Steel has been able to do little to see the project off the ground since signing the MoU with the state government in June 2007 because it could not acquire the land on its own.

Man Industries to foray into steel manufacturing

BS reported that, after re entering in the realty business, Man Industries has set its eyes on manufacturing of steel with an initial capacity of 1.5 million tonnes to 2 million tonnes per annum entailing an investment of INR 4,000 crore.

As per report, it is open to both setting up a Greenfield facility as well as outright acquisition of an operating firm having that kind of capacity.

Mr Ramesh Mansukhani chairman of Man Industries however said that there is no such proposal yet, but the company is certainly looking for opportunities to enter into the steel business.

Man Industries has recently announced its plans to locate a new manufacturing facility on a 162 acre site at the Little Rock Port, USA with an investment of USD 100 million. Production from the plant will start next year.

Financial closure for Krishnapattam UMPP in 3months – Report

It is reported that the financial closure of the Krishnapatnam ultra mega power project of Reliance Power Limited would be achieved in the coming 3 months.

Lenders to the INR 20,000 crore project, led by IDBI, have to commence due diligence for the project. Awarding contracts for boiler, turbine and generators would be completed in 2 months. These critical components component constitute 50% of the project cost.

Officials said that engineering majors such as BHEL, Doosan and L&T would be bidding for the contracts. These companies have submitted technical offers and commercial offers are yet to be negotiated. The EPC for the project would be undertaken by the group company Reliance Infrastructure Limited. Total land requirement for the project is 2,625 acres and it has been able to purchase about 65% of the land required for the project. The Andhra Pradesh government is in the process of acquiring the remaining land for it.

According to the schedule the first unit of the Krishnapatnam project is to be online by September 2013, but Reliance Power is making efforts to advance the commissioning of the unit by mid 2012. The 4,000 MW coal fired project would have 5 units of 800 MW each. The coal requirement for the project is estimated to be 14 million tonnes per annum at 80% plant load factor. Fly ash from the plant would be utilized for the upcoming cement plants of the group. A portion of ash would also be offered to cement manufactures in Visakhapatnam area.

Kerala HC restrains work on Vizhinjam terminal

BL reported that Kerala High Court has restrained the state government and Vizhinjam International Seaport Limited from commencing the construction works of the proposed international deepwater seaport & container transshipment terminal at Vizhinjam for 2 weeks in case it got clearance from the central government.

However, Mr Justice Thottathil B Radhakrishnan made it clear that the central government could go ahead with the consideration of the grant of clearance for the new port. He also directed the state government to place on record the report of the high level committee which considered the tenders submitted by various consortiums for the construction of the new port.

The court asked IL& FS Infrastructure Development Corporation Limited, which assisted the government to evaluate the tenders, to place on record its evaluation report regarding the tender submitted by the petitioner Zoom Developers Private Limited of Mumbai.

According to the petitioner, after an evaluation of the bid submitted by the petitioner, IL&FS had sought certain clarifications and documents. The petitioner had later complied with all these requirements. However, the petitioner came to know from the newspaper reports that Hyderabad based Infrastructure and Power Development Company, Lanco Infratech Limited had secured mandate from the Kerala government to develop the project.

Indian power ministry to improve ties with BHEL

Mr Jairam Ramesh union minister of state for power said that he wants to improve relations between Bharat Heavy Electricals Limited and his own ministry so that the power equipment major gets its due recognition.

Mr Ramesh said that BHEL has not been granted its due place in the past while the Chinese equipment makers are fast entering into India. The government has set an ambitious target of adding over 78,500 MW capacity in the 11th Plan, bulk of which would be through the coal fired stations.

While the BHEL would account for a major equipment supplies, the power generating companies have been facing shortages of the turbines and boilers going for imports.

Expressing concern on the bottlenecks faced by BHEL in transporting heavy equipment, Mr Ramesh said he would take up the issue with the ministries of railways and transport.

Uttarakhand approves Delhi Dehradun expressway

Projects Today reported that Uttarakhand government has agreed to a proposal by Uttar Pradesh government to build an expressway from New Delhi to Dehradun.

As per report, the 200 kilometers long, eight lane expressways along the Hindon River will start from Delhi linking Saharanpur and Ghaziabad in Uttar Pradesh. From Saharanpur, the state government will further extend it up to Dehradun.

Submission of price bids for Tilaiya UMPP by November 2008

Power Finance Corporation has finalized the submission of price bids for the 4,000 MW Tilaiya ultra mega power project in Hazaribagh district of Jharkhand on November 4th 2008, after which short listing of the successful bidder will take place.

PFC had earlier short listed 11 of the 13 companies who had sought qualification. These are Reliance Power, TATA Power, NTPC, Torrent Power, Essar Power, Sterlite, Lanco, JSPL, GVK Power, L&T and AES. The two companies who have not qualified to bid are Citra Thermal Power and Dian Wijaya.

Of the 11 short listed companies, 7 have already bought the request for proposal documents.

IL&FS emerges lowest bidder for JNPT SEZ project

Infrastructure Leasing & Financial Services has emerged as the lowest bidder for Jawaharlal Nehru Port Trust's port based special economic zone at JNPT in Thane district of Maharashtra.

Three companies including IL&FS and Ernst & Young have submitted their bids, in which IL&FS had quoted INR 7.2 million and Ernst & Young quoted INR 2.5 crore.

It may be noted that JNPT has floated a tender in December 2007 to hire a consultant to draw up a master plan for the EPZ, which will come up on 1,200 ha of land.

Hirakud dredging work to be completed by June end

SNS reported that the much awaited dredging work inside Hirakud reservoir is in full swing and is expected to be completed by end of June 2008. The dredging has been undertaken to open a passage to Sasan canal and facilitate smooth flow of water for the summer crop.

Mr JB Mahapatra superintendent engineer of Hirakud dam project said that "Henceforth, water in the Sasan canal will not be a problem and farmers can get water for cultivation."

The dredging work began on April 28th 2008 and more than 100,000 cubic meters of earth have been excavated so far, he informed. Since the mouth of the canal remained higher than the water level in the reservoir during summer, there arose problems in discharge even if there was sufficient water in the reservoir.

Mr Mahapatra said that dredging is done in 1 kilometer main and 1 kilometer link canal inside the reservoir for smooth flow of water during all seasons including summer. He added that "Nearly 2.5 to 3 meter deep and 36 meters wide canal is dug inside and hence we expect a regular flow will be maintained to the canal. At the same time, water to the tail end will not be a problem if wastage of water is prevented."

Meanwhile, Dr RN Bohidar development commissioner cum additional chief secretary, Mr Pradipta Kumar Patnaik collector of Sambalpur and senior officers from water resources department have visited the work site and expressed satisfaction at the progress.

Jyoti Structures designates Mr Nayak as deputy MD

Jyoti Structures Ltd announced that its board of directors at a meeting held on June 13th 2008 has re designated Mr Santosh Nayak as deputy MD of the Company with effect from June 14th 2008.

Deccan Cements unveils INR 432 crore CAPEX plan

BS reported that Hyderabad based Deccan Cements Limited has embarked on a INR 432 crore capital expenditure plan, which involves expanding the production capacity at its existing facility in Nalgonda district, setting up an 18 MW captive thermal power plant to cater to cement manufacturing, besides putting up a railway siding to reinforce its infrastructure in cement dispatches as well as inward materials like coal, slag and gypsum.

Mr MB Raju chairman of Deccan Cements said that "We are adding 1.3 million tonnes capacity to the existing 0.7 million tonnes, with special emphasis on blended cements, ordinary Portland cement and specialty cements. The Brownfield expansion will be commissioned in August 2008 and commercial production would begin in September 2008, with an additional 500,000 tonnes to start with."

Mr Raju said that the captive thermal power plant, which was expected to be commissioned by this year end, would take its aggregate generating capacity to 27.5 MW. It currently has 4.5 MW hydel power and 5 MW wind power plants in Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu. He added that "We require around 22 MW for captive use and the surplus will be earmarked for merchant sales."

Deccan Cement has clocked a net profit of INR 10.93 crore for the January to March 2008 quarter up by 37.14% YoY as compared with INR 7.97 crore during January to March 2007 quarter. Its total income during the quarter grew by 15.19% YoY to INR 54.51 crore as against INR 47.32 crore.

For the full year, its net profit touched INR 47.96 crore up by 68.75% YoY as against INR 28.42 crore, while total income was up by 22.24% YoY to INR 212.25 crore as against INR 173.62 crore.

Flat Products - Outcome of Board Meeting

Flat Products Equipments India Ltd has informed BSE that the Board of Directors of the Company at its meeting held on June 12th 2008, inter alia, under the Physical category has approved the Transfer of accepted Physical Shares numbering 3868 out of 5745 valid shares under 45 Nos of Folios tendered in the Letter of Credit by the Acquirer Cockerill Maintenance & Ingerierie SA Belgium. This approval is subject to the payment to the respective sellers.

Export tax to hit slab supply to JSW US plate mill

Indian government's recent decision to retain export duty on slabs and other semi finished products while exempting flat products would hit JSW steel very hard. Slabs made at JSW Steel's Vijaynagar plant are sent to its newly acquired steel mill in the US to be rolled into plates for feeding pipe mills.

As per report, JSW Steel sends 40,000 tonnes of slab every month to the US and with the export duty of 15% on current slab price of USD 1000 per tonne the implication runs to USD 6 million per month.

Mr Sheshagiri Rao director finance at JSW Steel said that "We will talk to the government in this matter because due to this we may lose a huge sum of money."

TATA Steel plans to feed SEA rebar mills hit by export tax

Due to Indian government's recent decision to retain export duty on semi finished products while exempting flat products, TATA Steel will lose its synergies with its South East Asian subsidiaries like NatSteel and Millennium.

The Jamshedpur plant of TATA Steel has recently started rolling out 2 million tonnes additional billets to be sent to its subsidiaries in Singapore and Thailand.

This will be value added and sold in the emerging markets but with 15% export duty it will add costs for TATA Steel to the tune of USD 345 million per annum.

Indian pipe makers gain most on withdrawal of export tax

BL reported that the withdrawal of the export tax levied on domestic steel pipe and tube makers by government has brought much cheer to companies such as Welspun Gujarat Stahl Rohren and Jindal Saw. These companies had suffered sharp declines in stock price following concerns of a likely contraction in margins when the government had imposed an export duty of 10%.

In the interim period between the imposition of export tax and the recent withdrawal of it, both Welspun Gujarat and Jindal SAW had suffered severe downgrades in their earnings outlook. This was based on the reasoning that these companies, which operated in a highly global competitive scenario, would find it difficult to pass on the impact of higher taxes to their clients. The recent withdrawal of the export tax does away with these concerns.

Considering that steel pipe companies import most of their steel requirements and would have had little to do with the tight supply of steel in the domestic market, the withdrawal of export tax does not come as surprise.

Jindal SAW Q4 2008 net profit up by 21% YoY

Jindal SAW Limited has reported a 21% YoY increase in net profit to INR 85 crore for the January to March 2008 quarter as compared with INR 70 crore in January to March 2007 quarter. Sales stood at INR 952 crore down by 24.9% YoY as against INR 1,269 crore.

Mr Indresh Batra MD of Jindal SAW Limited said that "It has a strong order backlog in excess of USD 1 billion, of which 65% will be exported in the global market. Riding on the infrastructure boom, we are committed to explore every opportunity within its fold.”

Mr Batra added that “Our new initiatives in the domestic infrastructure space, especially water management and waterborne transportation, are progressing as per schedule."

Anti POSCO to observe ‘Black Week’ from June 22

SNS reported that, emboldened by recent successes in their movement against the mega steel project of POSCO, the POSCO Pratirodha Sangram Samiti has announced observance of ‘Black Week’ from June 22nd 2008 to June 28th 2008.

PPSS leader Mr Abhay Sahoo said that they have solicited cooperation from various organizations, political parties, leaders, social activists and environmentalists to make the ‘Black Week’ a success.

Left leaders including Mr AB Bardhan, Mr Prakash Karat, JMM leader Mr Sudam Marandi, NCP leader Mr Arun Dey, Congress leader Mr Umesh Swain and others have given consent to attend a the protest meeting at Balitutha on June 23rd 2008.

Such decision by the outfit, spearheading the anti POSCO campaign for almost 3 years, coincides with the third anniversary of the MoU signing between the government and POSCO. The MoU was signed on June 22nd 2005.

One killed at RINL

The Hindu reported that a worker in Rashtriya Ispat Nigam Limited’s Visakhapatnam Steel Plant was run over by a goods wagon on the plant premises on June 16th 2008.

According to Ms Vimala Kumari steel plant circle inspector, the goods wagon was being shunted when it moved on the down gradient killing Mr P Ramakrishna, who was on the track.

Steel plant police are investigating the case.

Godawari Power net in 2007-08 up by 82% YoY

Godawari Power & Ispat has posted net profit of INR 94.99 crore in 2007-08 fiscal up by 81.92% YoY as against INR 52.21 crore in 2006-07 fiscal. Net sales was up by 87.58% YoY INR 829.27 crore as against INR 442.09 crore.

Consolidated net sales in January to March 2008 quarter was up by 69.61% YoY to INR 809.82 crore as against INR 477.46 crore. Net profit was up by 69.61% YoY at INR 809.82 crore as against INR 477.46 crore.

EBIDTA margin for the 2007-08 fiscal was 21.96% and 18.78% for the January to March 2008 quarter. It has made provision for mark to market FOREX losses by INR 7.46 crore.

Godawari Power has 100% domestic sales and CAPEX for 2008-09 fiscal is INR 435 crore. The cash and the debt position of the company is that it has cash of INR 65 crore and current debt of INR 285 crore.

Dredging work starts at Paradip Port

SNS reported that dredging work of the Paradip channel has started with Mr K Raghuramaiah chairman of Paradip Port Trust inaugurating the program on board the dredger CSD Aquarius.

Describing the dredging as one of the most important developmental and expansion project of the port, Mr Raghuramaiah has highlighted various developmental works undertaken by the trust. Initially the dredging work will be done by the cutter and suction dredger CSD Aquarius and subsequently higher capacity dredgers will be deployed to cater to the requirement.

The dredging work is awarded to the Dredging Corporation of India. While the total cost of work amounts to INR 253.36 crore, it is expected that it would be complete by June 2009.

The total work includes 15 million cubic meters of dredging which includes 11.3 cubic meters dredging in the outer channel and 3.7 million cubic meters of dredging from the turning circle and the harbor inside. On completion of the, the depth of the entrance channel will be increased from 12.8 meter to 17.1 meter. By deepening the approach channel and entrance channel, the port will be in a position to handle cape size vessels of 125,000 DWT capacity.

TATA Steel bag rainwater harvesting fly ash management award

The Telegraph reported that TATA Steel’s West Bokaro division has won second prize for excellence in management for rainwater harvesting and fourth prize for fly ash management in an award given by the Jharkhand State Pollution Control Board.

Mr Rupesh Sharma of TATA Steel said that hydro geological feature of West Bokaro revealed that the area was undulating with hillocks, stony land, sand stones and coal seams, with the Bokaro river hardly flows during summer.

He said that to sustain operations of West Bokaro, an open cast mine spread across 4,300 acres, it is imperative to make alternative water storage arrangement. He added that rainwater harvesting is playing a major role in providing adequate water reserves.

Mr Sharma said that the area was gently undulating and hilly. Because of the slope, water flows towards one side. He added that "The general slope is towards south and the ground elevation within the lease hold varies from 329 meters to 402 meters. The Bokaro flowing from North West to south controls drainage in the area. The average annual rainfall is 1250mm with 60% of the total rainfall occurring during the monsoon."

Sources said that because of hilly topography, natural groundwater recharging was very difficult. However, TATA Steel’s efforts in rainwater harvesting became successful. Water from open cast mine pit and river is being pumped out during the rains and stored in same abandoned pit. The capacity of the abandoned underground pit is about 400 million gallon. It comprises two bore holes, one for harvesting or collecting rainwater and the other for withdrawing water through bore hole pump.

ADB may lend USD 500 million loan for Krishnapatnam UMPP

BS reported that Reliance Power will get a USD 500 million loan from the Asian Development Bank for the 4,000 MW ultra mega power project coming up at Krishnapatnam in Andhra Pradesh.

With this, Reliance Power is expected to achieve financial closure shortly. The project may cost over INR 18,000 crore, of which about 80% will be debt. Reliance Power is in discussions with Manila based ADB and a project appraisal team will come to India within 2 weeks for the final round of discussions.

Reliance Infrastructure, the engineering, procurement and construction contractor for the project, is in talks with leading global power equipment manufacturers for sourcing boilers, turbines and generators for the project.

The coal fired Krishnapatnam project is the third of the 9 UMPPs planned by the central government to bridge the 20,000 MW power deficit in India. The shortage is expected to shoot up by 15% to 20% every year. Andhra Pradesh will get about 1600 MW from the project while Tamil Nadu, Karnataka and Maharashtra will get 800 MW each.

L&T in talks to acquire Crompton project business

Larsen & Toubro is learnt to have initiated discussions to acquire the project business of Crompton Greaves. Sources said that L&T has started due diligence on Crompton’s project business, estimated at INR 400 crore.

Officials said that Crompton earns nearly 90% of its revenue from engineering product business, while project business contributes only 10%.

Both the companies, however, denied any such development. In an intimation to the Bombay Stock Exchange, Crompton said that as of date, it is not contemplating divestment of its project business.

In 2007-08 fiscal, Crompton has recorded standalone revenues of INR 3,875 crore and consolidated revenues of INR 6,830 crore. On the other hand, L&T posted a 55% YoY increase in net profit for 2007-08 fiscal at INR 2,173 crore. The gross sales stood at INR 25,187 crore up by 41% YoY.

Indian Railway RWF to hike wheel output for EMU trains

BL reported that Rail Wheel Factory is in the process of adding wheels production for the electrical multiple units trains on suburban services in India to its product portfolio. The demand of EMU segment is currently met out of imports and from the Durgapur Steel Plant.

Mr KC Jena chairman of railway board has urged RWF employees to prepare themselves to meet the challenge to meet the growing demand for EMU wheels. He said that the factory is in the process of scaling up its wheels for the regular rail coaches to 200,000 from 145,000 now.

Mumbai Metro rail project to earn carbon credits

BL reported that, after Delhi metro rail, it’s the turn of the Mumbai Metro rail project to earn carbon credits. The project will generate 651,938 carbon credits between 2011 and 2020. At the current market price of about INR 1,320, the credits will generate a revenue of INR 86.05 crore.

Mumbai Metro One Private Limited, the special purpose vehicle for the project, has submitted a detailed methodology report to the executive board of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change seeking clean development mechanism registration for the project. The proposed methodology is for the transport sector and applicable to project activities that reduce emissions through the construction and operation of urban rail based mass transit systems such as metro, light transit rail, tram and sky trains. The methodology, submitted to the UNFCCC for approval, is currently under review by the UNFCCC panel and a decision would be taken in August 2008.

According to the project design document submitted to the UNFCCC, baseline emission have been established by computing emissions, a passenger would have caused in absence of the project traveling the same origin to destination trip using modes of transport such as walking and cycling, private passenger car, taxis, motorcycles, rickshaws, buses and suburban rail.

Mumbai Metro One has engaged CDM transportation specialist Grutter Consulting of Switzerland to develop the methodology for the project.

Mumbai Metro One Private Limited would be implementing the Versova Andheri Ghatkopar metro corridor in Mumbai. It is a JV formed by Reliance Energy, Veolia Transport of France and Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority. Mumbai Metro One has been given a 35 year concession by MMRDA to develop and operate a rail based mass transit system.

Jain Energy inks MoU with MP for 1,000 MW power plant

BL reported that Kolkata based Jain Energy Limited has entered into a MoU with Madhya Pradesh for setting up a 1,000 MW coal based power plant in Shadol district with an investment of INR 5,000 crore.

Jain Energy has previously entered to a MoU with the Chhattisgarh Government for setting up a similar project at Balpur of Janjgir in Champa district.

According to Jain Energy, discussions are on with the governments of Orissa, Jharkhand and West Bengal for setting up Greenfield power projects. It said that expression of interest is submitted for hydro power projects in Arunachal Pradesh and Bhutan.

JSW Steel – Change in directorate

JSW Steel Limited has informed BSE about the following changes in its directorate

1. Karnataka State Industrial Investment & Development Corporation Limited has vide its letter dated June 13th 2008 nominated Mr V Madhu as its nominee director on the board of the company with effect from June 13th 2008 in place of Mrs Sobha Nambisan.

2. Mr K Vijayaraghavan has been inducted as an additional director on the board of directors of the company with effect from June 16th 2008.

3. Mr Ajay Shah has been inducted as an additional director on the board of directors of the company with effect from June 16th 2008.

RIL lignite plan in Rajasthan hits hurdle

BS reported that Reliance Industries Limited's efforts at straddling the entire energy basket from crude, coal and right down to lignite called brown coal have hit a bump. RIL is looking at pumping gas trapped between layers of lignite from the acreage. This is similar to tapping gas from between coal seams, called coal bed methane in industry parlance

As per report, RIL's move to secure a reconnaissance permit for lignite in Rajasthan's Barmer district has come under question as the area identified by it overlaps with acreage marked by government for the coal ministry's regional promotional exploration scheme.

Neyveli Lignite Corporation, however, has told the coal ministry that the area proposed by RIL is overlapping with acreage marked for center’s special scheme. Under this scheme, government run companies undertake exploration with a view to ensuring regional development in prospecting for coal or lignite.

RIL had sought the reconnaissance permit for a 74.34 square kilometers area in the Sanchore basin of Barmer district in western Rajasthan. RIL executives were unavailable for comment but government officials said this area was meant for prospecting by state owned gas utility GAIL, though the state government was yet to officially indicate it.

Barmer is home to one of the biggest oil finds of recent times, made by UK's Cairn Energy and has various agencies working with aim of tapping gas trapped in layers of coal or turn coal into gas.

Villagers in Orissa for pollution free environment

The Hindu reported that, faced with rapidly degrading environments in their proximity, several villagers in Orissa went through a unique learning process for submitting their complaints in proper way in order to take the violators to the task.

The pre emptive step would help the villagers, who have been facing various pollution hazards, alert the administration about risk of giving permissions to any mining companies to operate in their areas.

A two page pro forma was handed over to these villagers to collect information including frequent checking of pollution level by competent authorities, any occurred, due to mining operations, detail of deaths and their causes and police reports. These villagers will also be guided on ready-to-use air pollution kit by which they would be able to check if their atmosphere is polluted by a mining or industrial operation.

The two day program organized by NGO ‘Vasundhara’ intended to train the people on various aspects of environmental laws and clearance processes.

According to a study, prevalence of respiratory and water borne diseases has been high among local people in the Suakati area. Intense mining operation in mineral rich districts has already pushed to the local people to a corner. Contrary to claims by state government and private companies, the development, this was expected from mineral exploitation still eluded.

210 MW Amarkantak thermal power unit synchronized

MyIris reported that the 210 MW unit at the Amarkantak thermal power station of the Madhya Pradesh Power Generating Company in Anuppur district has synchronized recently. The power station already has two 30 MW units and two 120 MW units operating.

Mr Jairam Ramesh union minister of state for commerce & power was at pains to find out that while the synchronization on oil of the 210 MW unit was an important milestone, it would be another 4 months before the unit is scheduled to be in full commercial operation.

He also expressed his anguish that the single 500 MW unit at Birsinghpur in Umaria district, which was declared commissioned in June 2007 has yet to come into full commercial operation.

Sikkim scraps 4 mega hydel projects on eco concerns

BL reported that Mr Dawa Tshering Lepcha and Mr Tenzing Lepcha have withdrawn their indefinite hunger strike following the state government’s move to scrap 4 mega hydro electric power projects in Dzongu in North Sikkim.

The scrapped hydel power projects are located in Dzongu in North Sikkim
1. 141 MW Rangyong
2. 120 MW Lingza
3. 90 MW Ringpi
4. 33 MW Rukel

According to a letter dated June 12th 2008, addressed to Mr Athup Lepcha president of Affected Citizens of Teesta, Mr P Wangchen principal chief engineer cum secretary of the state power & energy department said that the 4 projects were scrapped by the state government taking into consideration the sentiment of the local people and the need to conserve the environment.

The state government has scrapped both the Rangyong and Lingzya hydel power projects, for which it had initially signed MoUs with private developers while no definite proposals were made for the Ringpi and Rukel projects, both located inside the Khangchendzonga National Park in Dzongu.

Mr Tseten Lepcha chief coordinator of ACT said that the scrapping of the four projects is a step towards protection of Sikkim, its nature and environment. However, the supporters of the ACT are not so happy over the development.

Thermal power project sanctioned for Solapur – Mr Shinde

Mr Sushilkumar Shinde union power minister said that union power ministry has sanctioned 1,320 MW thermal power project for Solapur and the process for this proposed project will start within few days.

He said that the thermal power project will be located at Phatatewadi in South Solapur tehsil of the district. Senior officers of the National Thermal Power Corporation visited the proposed site and decided to start the project at the earliest. He added that two units of 650 MW per unit will cost around INR 6,500 crore.

Mr Shinde also said that union cabinet has cleared the proposal of widening of the Mumbai Hyderabad Highway number 9 and Mumbai Bangalore Highway number 13 into four lane.

ArcelorMittal to acquire Bayou Steel

ArcelorMittal announced that it has signed an agreement to acquire Bayou Steel, a producer of structural steel products with facilities at LaPlace in Louisiana and Harriman in Tennessee in US for USD 475 million. The transaction is subject to regulatory approval.

Bayou Steel is an independent producer of medium and light structural steel and bar size products. The Louisiana facility produces billets, equal leg angles, unequal leg angles, flats, channels, standard beams and wide flange beams. The Tennessee rolling mill produces merchant bar shapes, including angles, channels, flats, rounds, and squares, as well as rebar.

Through its Mississippi River Recycling division, Bayou Steel operates an automobile shredder at the LaPlace facility, as well as barge wrecking and full service scrap yards at LaPlace and its facility in Harvey, Louisiana. The company also has a deep water dock and distribution network, including four stocking locations in the United States.

Total prime finished product shipments for fiscal year 2007 were about 510,000 tons which generated revenues of approximately $US 331 million. The company employs 630 people.

Mr Jos Jacqué CEO of ArcelorMittal Long Carbon North America said "We are excited by the opportunity that this acquisition represents as it further strengthens our long product portfolio, customer base and distribution network in North America. We look forward to welcoming our new colleagues and to capture the synergies generated by integrating these operations into the ArcelorMittal group."

PT Krakatau seeks USD 3 billion investment for plant

Bloomberg reported that Indonesia's PT Krakatau Steel, in talks with Accelor Mittal and TATA Steel Ltd is seeking USD 3 billion from a partnership to build a second plant to meet rising domestic demand in Southeast Asia's largest economy.

Mr Muhammad Lutfi head of the Indonesian Investment Coordinating Board in an interview in Kuala Lumpur said that Krakatau plans to form a joint venture to build a 2.5 million tonne capacity steel plant next to its existing facility.

Mr Lufti said that interested parties, which may also include Essar Steel Ltd and Australia's BlueScope Steel Ltd are expected to submit bids before the end of the year. The overseas partner will control a majority stake in the joint venture.

Mr Lutfi said that “We want to develop our automotive industry, we want to develop a lot of things from steel. Surging prices of iron ore, a raw material for steel products, mean Krakatau has to expand into higher-value products to improve margins. We want to industrialize Krakatau Steel. We need to do this.''

Global steelmakers are seeking to expand in Indonesia to tap rising demand for steel in Southeast Asia's largest economy as the lowest interest rates in three years boost demand for houses and cars. A new plant will help Krakatau double output capacity.

ArcelorMittal Galati posts EUR 97 million profit for 2007

Romanian media reported that the rising prices of raw materials coupled with fluctuating quotations for steel and other metals had a serious impact on ArcelorMittal Galati in Romania.

As per report, ArcelorMittal Galati, last year doubled its income, to EUR 97 million after having stepped into the black in the previous year, when it posted EUR 47.2 million profit.

Mr Augustine Kochuparampil CEO of ArcelorMittal Galati said that "Raw material prices rose significantly last year, above steel prices. In the future, we expect things to improve and the margin to narrow.”

He added that investments in steel plants in recent years, to retool and upgrade production capacities, have offset rising prices of raw materials.

NASA finds new manganese silicide in comet dust

NASA researchers and scientists from the United States, Germany and Japan have found a new mineral in material that likely came from a comet.

The mineral, a manganese silicide named Brownleeite, was discovered within an interplanetary dust particle, or IDP, that appears to have originated from comet 26P/Grigg-Skjellerup. The comet originally was discovered in 1902 and reappears every 5 years. The team that made the discovery is headed by Mr Keiko Nakamura Messenger, a space scientist at NASA's Johnson Space Center in Houston.

The mineral was surrounded by multiple layers of other minerals that also have been reported only in extraterrestrial rocks. There have been 4,324 minerals identified by the International Mineralogical Association, or IMA. This find adds one more mineral to that list.

The IMA-approved new mineral, Brownleeite, is named after Donald E. Brownlee, professor of astronomy at the University of Washington, Seattle. Brownlee founded the field of IDP research. The understanding of the early solar system established from IDP studies would not exist without his efforts. Brownlee also is the principal investigator of NASA's Stardust mission.

Since 1982, NASA routinely has collected cosmic and interplanetary dust with high-altitude research aircraft. However, the sources of most dust particles have been difficult to pin down because of their complex histories in space. The Earth accretes about 40,000 tons of dust particles from space each year, originating mostly from disintegrating comets and asteroid collisions. This dust is a subject of intense interest because it is made of the original building blocks of the solar system, planets, and our bodies.

Rautaruukki to cut 15 to 20 jobs in Finland to streamline operations

Rautaruukki is to streamline steel service centre operations by eliminating overlaps at the centers and centralizing customer service. The division of work between units will be reorganized to improve service centre delivery accuracy, cost efficiency and profitability.

The release said that “In connection with streamlining operations, employer employee negotiations will start on 23 June 2008 at Ruukki Metals’ service centers in Järvenpää and Naantali in Finland and in Halmstad in Sweden. Efforts will be made to find work in Ruukki’s other units for the approximately 15 to 20 employees affected in Järvenpää, Naantali and Halmstad. These three centers employ a total of 318 people.”

The release added that “Stainless and aluminum product operations will be centered entirely on Järvenpää. Operations at the Naantali service centre will be enhanced by improving production and cost efficiency. The Halmstad service centre in Sweden will shift to optimizing own cutting of carbon steels instead of partly subcontracting as at present.”

Mitsubishi Heavy forecasts cost increases as steel prices surge

Japan's third largest shipbuilder Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Ltd said that its annual costs at its marine unit will probably increase by as much as JPY 12 billion (USD 111 million) because of rising steel prices.

Mr Shiro Iijima managing executive officer in charge of the marine business without providing the percentage increase told analysts and reporters that Mitsubishi Heavy which uses 350,000 tonnes to 400,000 tonnes of steel a year may have to pay JPY 10.5 billion to JPY 12 billion more for steel. He said that “The rising cost of steel plates will have a big impact on the Japanese shipbuilding industry.”

He added that “Some shipyards are likely to go into the red.''

Mitsubishi Heavy is looking to take more orders for vessels, including cruise ships that use less steel, and expand repair works to help it weather higher steel costs.

Taiwanese rebar mills urge government to remove rebar export limitation policy

Because of Taiwan’s government policy, Taiwan rebar price are relatively lower than the global price level, as global rebar prices have soared. However, although the government's export policy is working, some rebar mills have suggested adjusting some part of this export policy.

They said that the government should remove the rebar export limitation policy to earn more foreign exchange and added that the government should also limit the billet exporting quantity to supply Taiwan domestic demand, as its first priority.

(Sourced from YIEH.com)

Rising tin price shoot up can price in Philippines

Philippines consumers can expect another increase in the prices of canned goods next month after tin can manufacturers recently adjusted their prices by 10%. Data from the Department of Trade and Industry showed canned goods became more expensive by 25 to 35 centavos this month following an increase in the price of tin cans in April.

Mr Henry Tañedo chairman & president of the Tin Can Manufacturers Association of the Philippines said that “Higher prices of raw materials are pushing them to increase prices by 10% next month. 202 cans, which is used for packaging sardines, is now at PHP 3.40 and is expected to go up to PHP 3.74 a piece in July. At the beginning of the year the 202 cans were sold at PHP 3.05.”

Reports said canned goods makers recently implemented another PHP 2 increase, which was not reported to the DTI. Retailers and canned goods manufacturers were given until early next week to explain the alleged price increase.

Imported tin plates comprise 70% of tin can production costs. Tin can costs make up about 20% to 45% of the total retail price of canned goods. DTI’s latest price report showed a 155 gram could of sardines costs between PHP 10 and PHP 11, while a 165 gram can of luncheon meat is sold at PHP 23 to PHP 26.

Japanese high strength heavy plate exports in April

Japanese exports of high strength heavy plate totaled 58,437 tonnes in April and the export price was at USD 894 per tonne.

The country’s exports reached 304,761 tonnes from January to April 2008 period and the export price was at USD 901 per tonne.

South Korea was the main export destination with 9,056 tonnes and the figure was 57,844 tonnes from January to April. China imported 34,550 tonnes from Japan.

(Sourced from YIEH.com)

H beam market strengthens in Taiwan

The management of Taiwan Dragon Steel forecasts that H beam prices will continue to rise in the next half. The main reasons are the global scrap and billet price continuing to stay high along with strong demand; H beam will maintain its high price level.

The other major H beam supplier, Tung Ho Steel has raised its June shipment price by TWD 1,500 per tonne pushing its new price to TWD 36,500 per tonne.

In the following half year, high demand will come from panel mills and electrical mills for plant expansion projects; therefore, the H beam price has no reason to decline in the Taiwan market.

(Sourced from YIEH.com)

Firm ferrous scrap price in Tokyo

JMB reported that ferrous scrap market is firm at around JPY 59,000 per tonne for H2 grade at the dealers' purchase price including freight around Tokyo. The price is likely to keep firm under tight local supply and strong demand at home and abroad.

Siemens to acquires BJC in Spain

Siemens announced that it is acquiring BJC Spain’s third largest supplier of switches and socket outlets in Spain. This acquisition will enable Building Technologies, a division of the Siemens Industry Sector to expand its strong global position on the market for electrical installation technology. Building Technologies will also gain entry to the residential construction market and improve its access to the market for electrical installation in functional buildings in Spain. The parties have agreed not to disclose the purchase price.

Headquartered in Rubí near Barcelona, BJC is one of Spain’s leading suppliers of switches and socket-outlets. With a workforce of some 380 employees, BJC manufactures and distributes as one of its main tasks switches and socket outlets, street, garden and industrial lighting as well as plug and socket devices for industrial applications. BJC has a very strong presence in the local electrical wholesale trade and has a nationwide sales network. The company generated sales revenues of some EUR 54 million in the 2007 fiscal year.

Mr Godehardt Schneider CEO of the Electrical Installation Technology Business Unit at Siemens Building Technologies said that “BJC will broaden our base on the profitable Spanish market for electrical installation technology and opens up many possibilities for us to reinforce our position further as one of the world’s leading manufacturers of electrical installation material for residential and functional buildings.”

He added that “We look forward to being able to offer BJC’s customers an even wider range of innovative products in future.”

BJC has been extensively restructured by a financial investor in recent years. Siemens will acquire 100% of the company’s share capital. The parties have agreed not to disclose the purchase price. BJC will be integrated in the Electrical Installation Technology Business Unit of the Building Technologies Division.

Hoa Phat to issue more shares to increase capital

Bloomberg reported that Hoa Phat Group Joint Stock Co, a Vietnamese steel and real estate company is planning to issue 14 million shares to raise its capital to VND 1.4 trillion (USD 84 million).

Hoa Phat Group in a statement said that it will also issue an additional of 8.26 million shares to its partners. The statement added that Hoa Phat also plans to pay dividends for last year by cash and shares with a ratio of 10% and 30% respectively.

According to data compiled by Bloomberg, Hoa Phat has 140 million shares outstanding and a market value of VND 6.3 trillion making it the ninth biggest company on the Vietnam's main bourse.

Pan Pacific to use more secondary copper sources

JMB reported that Pan Pacific Copper, which is JV of Nippon Mining & Metals and Mitsui Mining & Smelting, tries to increase the secondary materials usage for copper smelting to cover lower grade ore.

The weight of secondary materials including low grade copper scrap, slag and crude copper increased to 20% from 12% 2 years ago.

Sidor output in Q1 down by 30% YoY

El Universal reported that Venezuela's largest steelmaker Siderurgica del Orinoco produced about 30% less of the metal in the first quarter from a year earlier.

The newspaper said that Sidor as the company produced 792,000 tonnes of liquid steel in the first quarter down from 1.1 million tonnes in 2007.

It said that labor disruptions contributed to the slowdown as workers sought to pressure the company into signing a new contract.

The newspapers said that production fell by 9.5% during April and May, as the government completed a takeover of the steelmaker. It said that Sidor is on target to produce 3.9 million tonnes of liquid steel this year down from 4.3 million tonnes in 2007

POSCO Japan to build new steel service center in Kyushu

JMB reported that POSCO Japan's Kitakyushu based steel processing subsidiary, POSCO JKPC builds new plant to process automotive flat steel at Kanda in Fukuoka after the firm secured around 30,000 square meters of land.

The plant with leveler and slitter will start operation in summer 2009 and the firm provides sheet steel processing service for Nissan Motor's plant and parts makers around Kyushu for Daihatsu Motor.

ArcelorMittal Asturias selects AIS solution for scheduling in plate mill

As part of a major expansion project on the heavy plate mill of Avilés, ArcelorMittal Asturias selected the AIS solution to improve scheduling and plate nesting.

ArcelorMittal Asturias said that BetaPlanner, the well proven AIS module for rolling mill scheduling optimization, will be implemented to increase the efficiency of the plate mill. Another SteelPlanner module, PIANO Plate Intelligent Assignment and Nesting Optimization, will manage the assignment and nesting of customer plates in mother slabs.

PIANO automatically generates cutting plans for combinations of customer plates and assigns those combinations to existing mother slabs from a stockyard. It handles the nesting of customer plates into mother plates, the nesting of those mother plates into existing slabs, as well as the scheduling of those slabs for the cutting table.

On top of the plate nesting optimization, PIANO will also help generate the slab requirement for both the local continuous caster and from other ArcelorMittal steel Plants. The sequence in which the daughter slabs will be processed by the mill will be solved by the BetaPlanner, considering an extensive number of technological and logistical constraints. BetaPlanner will also care for the cadence of the two normalizing furnaces.

Mr Jean Pierre Mullié manager of Flat Rolling of ArcelorMittal Asturias said that “This project contributes and supports our strategic goal of De bottlenecking, increasing production capacity up to 800,000 tonne per year as determined by ArcelorMittal Global Plate Organization.”

He added that the project started in Q1 2008 after a comprehensive selection process and will be taken live in the Q4 2008.

The AIS Group, headquartered at Linz in Austria is a leading supplier of planning and scheduling systems for the metals industry. Solutions from AIS increase the efficiency of capital intensive production equipment through the optimization of capacity planning and production schedules.

Paranapanema board approves capital increase to reduce debt

BNamericas reported that the board of Brazilian mining and metals group Paranapanema approved a capital increase on June 13th 2008 aimed at reducing the company's debt.

Paranapanema in a statement said that it will raise at least BRR 381 million (USD 234 million) by issuing roughly 83.8 million common shares and a maximum of BRR 645 million by issuing around 142 million common shares,

With the increase the group's share capital would rise to a maximum of BRR 1.61 billion.

Acepar to supply billets to Acerin

BNamericas reported that Paraguayan steelmaker Acepar has promised to supply billets to local company Acerin which has no supplies of the input material to make rebar for construction.

The report said that Acepar technicians plan to visit Acerin to determine which specific products the company needs for manufacturing rebar. The move will help alleviate the shortage of bars that has troubled Paraguay's market for some time.

Mr Hugo González a representative of Paraguayan workers cooperative Cootrapar said in May that the shortage was because Acepar does not prioritize the local market, a charge Acepar denied.

The company reportedly has 45,000 tonne of steel products on hand including 21,000 tonne for the local market and 24,000 tonne for export.

SDI complete the acquisition of Recycle South

Steel Dynamics, Inc announced that OmniSource Corporation, a wholly owned subsidiary of Steel Dynamics, completed the recently announced acquisition of Recycle South, LLC on June 10th 2008.

OmniSource which already owned 25% of Recycle South acquired the remaining 75% equity interest for a purchase price of approximately USD 515 million, comprised of 3,938,000 shares of Steel Dynamics common stock valued at approximately USD 140 million; cash of USD 232 million and the assumption of certain liabilities, including net debt of approximately USD 143 million. This results in a total enterprise value of about USD 640 million.

Mr Keith Busse chairman & CEO of Steel Dynamics said that "This transaction significantly expands our recycled metals business platform created by the acquisition of OmniSource in October 2007. It demonstrates SDI's strategic commitment to the continued expansion of ferrous and non ferrous recycling, which is an important element of our overall growth plan. The additional capacity of the Recycle South operations brings our company's total annual ferrous scrap processing capacity to approximately seven million tons. We are pleased that the transaction has closed within the expected timeframe, and look forward to a smooth integration. The addition of the Recycle South business to OmniSource will increase both the size and scope of our scrap operations, and establish a platform for continued growth."

Mr Marvin Siegel chairman & CEO of Recycle South said that "We look forward to the next stage of our involvement with OmniSource and are excited to join the Steel Dynamics team. Our existing working relationship will make for a natural transition allowing us to sustain our growth pattern and maintain the highest level of service to our customers. Our strength has always been based in the Southeast and we are now excited to provide regional leadership as part of a larger network of companies."

Recycle South one of the largest regional scrap metal recycling companies in the nation,is headquartered at Spartanburg in South Carolina.

Genco Shipping acquires 6 drybulk new buildings

Genco Shipping & Trading Limited announced that it has agreed to acquire six drybulk newbuildings from Lambert Navigation Ltd, Northville Navigation Ltd, Providence Navigation Ltd and Prime Bulk Navigation Ltd for an aggregate purchase price of USD 530 million. The acquisition is subject to the completion of customary additional documentation and closing conditions.

The six vessels comprised of three Capesize and three Handysize vessels are expected to be delivered to Genco from the fourth quarter of 2008 through the fourth quarter of 2009. Upon completion of the acquisition and including the three drybulk vessels the Company agreed to acquire from Bocimar International NV and Delphis NV as well as the four remaining Capesize vessels to be acquired from companies within the Metrostar Management Corporation group, Genco’s fleet will consist of 41 drybulk vessels with a total carrying capacity of approximately 3,516,000 DWT and an average age of approximately 5.8 years.

Mr Robert Gerald Buchanan president of Genco Shipping said that "We are pleased to further expand Genco’s leadership position in the drybulk industry with the acquisition of six high-quality newbuildings. Building upon our agreement to acquire three drybulk vessels in May, this acquisition is consistent with our portfolio approach to acquire modern vessels that enhance our fleet profile and improve our position to benefit from the strong demand for essential commodities such as iron ore and coal. As we have in the past, we intend to seek opportunities to lock away our newly acquired vessels on attractive time charters prior to their delivery."

POSCO makes plans for steel plant in Vietnam

It is reported that the provincial authorities of Khanh Hoa have approved a plan to allocate 942 hectare of land to the north of Van Phong Bay for a steel refinery, thermo power plant and port proposed by South Korean giant POSCO.

Khanh Hoa People’s Committee said that the projects would be located on Hon Gom Penisula and Dam Mon Lagoon in the province’s Van Ninh District.

Provincial authorities noted that the steel refinery would not be located on an area in Van Phong Bay zoned for a new bonded warehouse and goods transit depot proposed by the Viet Nam Ship-Building Industry Group.

BSRM to start commercial production

It is reported that Bangladesh's largest steel plant BSRM Steel Limited with the yearly producing capacity of 375,000 tonnes will start commercial operation from Saturday.

The report quoted Mr Alihussain Akberali chairman of the BSRM Group claimed that this is one of the largest steel plants in South Asia, as only TATA and Essar of India have plants exceeding the production capacity of the plant.

He said that "We are formally commissioning production in the new plant Saturday. The new steel plant, a subsidiary of BSRM Group, has been set up in Bangladesh's southeastern port city Chittagong at a cost of around BDT 4.7 billion (USD 67 million”).

Mr Akberali said that the steel rod the plant will produce might get market in Middle East countries. He said that "We will consider to export the product after meeting demand of local market as it has tremendous potentialities in the Middle East.”

The BSRM Group, involved in steel sector since 1930 in the region, has an annual turnover over BDT 9 billion (USD 129 million).

CMC closes acquisition of PHP Nike SA in Poland

Commercial Metals Company announced that its subsidiary, CMC Poland has completed the acquisition of substantially all the outstanding shares of PHP Nike SA located at Dabrowa Gornicza in Poland.

Established in 1997, PHP Nike SA is a leading producer of welded steel meshes, cold rolled wire rod and cold rolled rebar in Poland with annual production capacity of 90,000 tonnes. It will operate under our CMC International Fabrication and Distribution segment.

Mr Hanns Zoellner executive vice president of CMC and president of CMC International said that "PHP Nike S.A. has been a major customer of wire rod produced at our minimill in Poland. This acquisition allows CMC to commence the next step of vertical integration in Poland and is a substantial expansion of our product line in downstream operations. With this acquisition, CMC will offer a more complete line of value-added products to the construction industry, differentiating us in the market. In addition, CMC Poland has purchased mesh equipment for installation at the Polish minimill location which will bring total mesh capacity up to 160,000 tonnes per annum."

Commercial Metals Company and subsidiaries manufacture, recycle and market steel and metal products, related materials and services through a network including steel minimills, steel fabrication and processing plants, construction related product warehouses, a copper tube mill, metal recycling facilities and marketing and distribution offices in the United States and in strategic international markets.

US weekly crude steel production decrease by 0.8%YoY

American Iron & Steel Industries reported that in the week ending June 14th 2008, US’s raw steel production was 2.101 million net tons while the capability utilization rate was 88.1%. Production was 2.119 million net tons in the week ending June 14th 2007, while the capability utilization then was 88.6%. The current week production represents 0.8% decrease from the same period in 2007.

Production for the week ending June 14th 2008 is down 1.5% from the previous week ending June 7th 2008 when production was 2.134 million net tons and the rate of capability utilization was 89.4%.

Adjusted YTD production through June 14th 2008 was 50.225 million net tons at a capability utilization rate of 88.8%. That is a 2.7% increase from the 48.879 million net tons during the same period last year, when the capability utilization rate was 85.7%.

District wise production for the week ending June 14th 2008
1. Northeast Coast: 173
2. Pittsburgh/Youngstown: 211
3. Lake Erie: 89
4. Detroit: 108
5. Indiana/Chicago: 483
6. Midwest: 257
7. Southern: 686
8. Western: 94
(In thousands of net tons)

AISI’s estimate is based on reports from companies representing about 75% of the US’s raw steel capability and includes revisions for previous months

ArcelorMittal stake in Erdemir reaches 24.989%

ArcelorMittal announced that following purchases of 11.31% on June 13 it now owns 24.989% of the Turkish steel company Erdemir.

The shares were acquired in transactions with Société Générale, Nextgen Capital Limited and Credit Suisse International. The acquisition price was YTL 8.4 (USD 6.69) per share. The value of the acquired stake is USD 869.25 Million.

Mr Sudhir Maheshwari senior executive VP of ArcelorMittal and a member of the company’s Group Management Board said that "We are pleased to be making this strategic investment in Erdemir, which we see as a very attractive company in a rapidly growing economy with excellent prospects for further growth.”

Erdemir to start flat products production at Iskenderun in August

Reuters reported that Turkish steel maker Erdemir is expecting to start producing flat steel products at its Iskenderun plant in southern Turkey in August 2008. It has invested some USD 3 billion to start producing flat products at the Isdemir plant at Iskenderun.

An Erdemir official said that "This investment is about to be completed. In the second half of July 2008 we will start trial production and we aim to get the first flat products from there towards the end of August 2008."

Erdemir sees profit of TRL 1 billion in 2008

Reuters reported that Turkish steelmaker Erdemir is expected to show a net profit of around TRL 1 billion in 2008 up from TRL 679 million in 2007. In the first quarter, Erdemir’s profit rose by 57% YoY to TRL 226.6 million.

Mr Coskun Ulusoy CEO of parent company Oyak Group said that "This year we expect Erdemir to have net profit of around TRL 1 billion."

Mr Ulusoy said that "Erdemir and Renault are the main pillars of the business. The sale of our other companies could be considered. The companies for which there is most demand are the cement companies. There is not a day when we do not get an offer. When we talk we say we have no intention to sell but we do sit down and look at the offers."

Oyak Group, which bought Erdemir in 2006, is Turkey's army pension fund with interests ranging from an auto partnership with France's Renault to financial services. Oyak Group has liquid assets of USD 3.5 billion and wants to be in areas such as infrastructure, industry, energy, mining and commodities.

Amana secures AED 85 million contract from ADNOC

Amana Contracting & Steel Buildings said that it has been awarded an AED 85 million contract by Abu Dhabi National Oil Company for the construction of a new research centre for Takreer. The research centre is part of the Petroleum Institute Campus, being developed by ADNOC at Sas Al Nakhl in Abu Dhabi. The total built up area for the facility is 6,000 square meters and is scheduled for completion in June 2009.

A senior executive at Amana Contracting said that "ADNOC is one of the highest profile clients. The reason why we have won this project is because we have delivered all our previous projects on time and within budget while meeting all the quality standards. There were no accidents on site when we executed projects for ADNOC, previously. This new contract from ADNOC will definitely enhance our reputation in the market."

The contract encompasses construction of a 3 storey research centre building, comprising laboratories, workshops, pilot plant, gas bunker and offices in addition to all related services and infrastructure. The centre also aims to provide employment opportunities for UAE nationals.

Mr Awaidha Murshed A Al Murar civil projects division manager of ADNOC said that "Amana's competitive offer coupled with a commitment to high quality standards and delivery resulted in our decision to award them this contract."

Amana Contracting has constructed more than 1,500 buildings across the Middle East.

Maaden inks USD 3.7 billion loan deals with SABIC

Arab News reported that Maaden Phosphate Company and Saudi Basic Industries Corporation have signed agreements worth USD 3.7 billion to develop the substantial phosphate deposits at Al Jalamid and utilize local natural gas and sulfur resources to manufacture diammonium phosphate.

The syndicated facilities comprise USD 2.06 billion 16 year conventional and Islamic facilities, a USD 200 million 16 year Korean Export Insurance Corporation covered facility, a USD 400 million 16 year facility provided by the Export Import Bank of Korea and a USD 100 million revolving working capital facility. Direct funding will also be provided by the public investment fund for USD 1.067 billion and the Saudi Industrial Development Fund for USD 135 million.

Dr Abdallah Dabbagh president & CEO of Maaden and also chairman said that operations are being developed in a JV with SABIC, through a limited liability company called Maaden Phosphate Company incorporated in Saudi Arabia.

The project involves the development, design, construction and subsequent operation of two primary sites. The first is the Al Jalamid mine site in the north of the Kingdom which will comprise a phosphate mine and a beneficiation plant. The second is the Ras Az Zawr. This will have a fertilizer production facility consisting of DAP, ammonia, sulfuric acid and phosphoric acid processing plants. Each site will be supported by an appropriate industrial and social infrastructure and provide a substantial number of jobs in the area.

The total cost of the project will be in the region of SAR 20.70 billion taking account of projected annual inflation and estimated financing costs and including engineering, procurements and construction costs of SAR 17.03 billion.

TAQA inks strategic pact with THEOLIA for power plant in Morocco

Abu Dhabi National Energy Company PJSC has inked a strategic partnership agreement with THEOLIA on June 10th 2008 for a renewable energy project in Morocco. This agreement aims to create a consortium of these two pre qualified companies to respond jointly to the international invitation to tender for the construction and operation of a 300 MW wind farm located in Tarfaya in Morocco.

Mr Peter Barker Homek CEO of TAQA said that "Today’s announcement is a real milestone for TAQA, it marks our first step into renewable energy. Our strategy is to diversify across the energy value chain in different territories, and by joining forces with THEOLIA in CED we feel that we are in a good position to bid for the new wind farm capacity. This is truly in line with our growth strategy and my vision for the company."

Mr Jean Marie Santander chairman & CEO of THEOLIA said that "This alliance confirms the development strategy of THEOLIA in emerging markets. Together, THEOLIA’s expertise and TAQA’s strength will give birth to a major player in the production of electricity from renewable energy in Morocco and the emerging markets in general."

TAQA and THEOLIA further agreed a 50:50 partnership in the Compagnie Eolienne du Détroit, including studying the possibility of optimizing wind sites in Morocco. This site, located in the North of Morocco and enjoying excellent wind conditions, offers a double opportunity, the possible re powering of the 84 turbines commissioned in 2000 and the possible extension of the wind farm by several hundred additional MW.

TAQA and THEOLIA are two major players in the production of electricity in Morocco: TAQA owns and operates a 1,356 MW thermal power station, providing about half of the annual electricity production of the Kingdom; THEOLIA, with its 50.4 MW wind farm, is the leading producer of electricity from wind energy in Morocco. With this alliance, TAQA and THEOLIA display their confidence in the potential of the renewable energy sector in Morocco and the emerging markets in general.

Pakistan to set up SME industrial estates in Punjab

Business Recorder reported that Punjab government has evolved a strategy for establishment of SME industrial estates aimed at mitigating the problems confronting the SME sector engaged with various industries in the province.

Reliable sources said that SME industrial estates would be set up in major industrial towns including Sialkot and work on the plan would be executed in upcoming financial year. The proposed plan would surely help reduce the problems being confronted by the SME sector, as basic facilities would be ensured in the proposed industrial estates.

It added that special attention would be accorded on the development of industrial sector on modern and scientific lines aimed at enhancing export volume and bringing industrial revolution through setting up large scale industries including agro based industries in the province.

The government would also introduce various schemes for the development of small and medium industries and loan facilities would be extended to the small and medium businessmen enabling them to upgrade their industrial units besides setting up new industrial projects in the Punjab.

Abyaar Qatar to embark on QAR 1 billion projects

The Peninsula reported that Abyaar Qatar Real Estate Development Company has received permission from Qatari Diar to convene work on projects worth an estimated QAR 1 billion.

Mr Yousef Al Hashemi chairman of Abyaar Qatar said that "Abyaar Qatar has been established with a capital of QAR 205 million. Main shareholders in Abyaar Qatar include Aayan Leasing and Investment Company, Securities House, Abdul Aziz Al Dakheel, Aljaber Group, Al Rashdan Group and Abyaar Real Estate Development Company. The official announcement of the company in Qatar will take place towards the end of this year."

Mr Al Hashemi said the company’s board will set the quota for the distribution of shares to new shareholders, as well as the regulations for capital call. He added that "The cost of our projects in Qatar is estimated at QAR 1 billion. We have recently obtained permits from Qatari Diar, main developers of the Lusail project, to start working on our projects in Qatar on the land that we bought."

Comoros seeks good trade relation with Iran

IRNA reported that Mr Abdullah Sambi President of Comoros has called for presence of investors from this northeastern Iranian province in his country's development projects. In a meeting with Mr Mohammad Javad Mohammadizadeh governor general of Khorassan Razavi province, he called on the provincial businessmen and industrialists to make investment in different projects in his country.

Mr Sambi also voiced his country's readiness to make investment in the areas of production of construction materials and cement in Iran. Referring to Iran as a friendly country, he called for further expansion of all out ties with the Islamic Republic of Iran.

Meanwhile, Mr Mohammadizadeh has announced readiness of provincial businessman to construct a cement factory in Comoros. He added that Iran is among the ten world countries enjoying the technology of constructing cement factory.

Iran mulls over opening EUR 500 million LC for Cuba

IRNA reported that Mr Ali Akbar Mehrabian Iranian minister of industries & mines has proposed to the government to increase the LC between Iran and Cuba to EUR 500 million.

Mr Mehrabian said that "The current approved LC by Iranian banks for Cuba is EUR 200 million, but considering the volume of contracts signed between the two sides recently Iran’s ministry of industries & mines has forwarded a proposal to the government to increase the figure to EUR 500 million."

Referring to the growing economic cooperation between Tehran and Havana in the past two years, he noted that currently the trade volume between the two countries stood at about EUR 213 million. He also talked about the complaints made by Cuban officials regarding bureaucracy and stated that Iran was trying to remove this issue and hoped that with the elimination of bureaucracy bilateral economic cooperation and trade volumes would increase.

DIC completes 40% of 5 labor villages

Dubai Industrial City said that its 5 labor villages being built in Dubai are about 40% complete. It added that 2 of the villages are expected to be ready by the end of 2008.

Mr Rashed Al Ansari VP of DIC said that 5 villages will accommodate 62,500 supervisors and laborers. He added that "Each village will have 26 residential buildings with the capacity to accommodate 12,500 people. We are investing more than AED 1 billion in this project and have completed 40% of the construction work across all 5 villages. Two will be ready by the end of 2008 and the remaining will be operational by the first quarter of 2009."

Mr Ansari said that "We are not building residential buildings for laborers. We are developing entire villages that offer residents an easier and pleasant living environment along with a wide range of services and facilities from entertainment to shopping and basic amenities such as medical, security and civil defense services. We are constructing 230 buildings across the 5 villages. All the buildings are equipped with central air conditioning. Each village features 7 restaurants in addition to sports areas dedicated to football, volleyball and cricket. The villages will have a supermarket, shops, a mosque, landscaped walkways, post office, and designated bus stops for labor transport."

He pointed out that all villages will be uniform in design and layout, offering 3 types of rooms according to the requirements of companies. He said "We are building flexible accommodation that offers single rooms for supervisors as well as rooms that can accommodate 5 people and larger ones for eight laborers. The idea is to ensure that we offer them good living standards and facilities."

The 560 million square foot Dubai Industrial City comprises 6 industrial clusters. It is located next to Dubai World Central's Al Maktoum International Airport and is close to Jebel Ali Port and Free Zone with easy accessibility to major highways such as Shaikh Zayed Road, Emirates Road and the Dubai Ring Road.

Petrogas wins deal to operate small oilfields in south Oman

Gulf News reported that Omani oil exploration firm Petrogas has led a field of nearly 200 local and international bidders to win a contract to operate a cluster of small oilfields in south Oman. As per report, the contract for the Rima cluster was awarded by Petroleum Development Oman, which is majority owned by the government.

Petrogas, which is a subsidiary of the privately owned MB Petroleum, will operate the cluster jointly with Oman Oil Company, the energy investment arm of the Omani government.

Mr John Malcolm MD of PDO hailed the Rima Small Fields Service Contract as an effective way to increase production from the cluster of fields. He said that "The 15 year service contract is aimed at raising in a quick and cost effective way, the production levels of these fields, which contain more than 500 million barrels of oil in the ground and are currently producing about 2,000 barrels of oil per day. The contract will allow PDO to dedicate its resources to the development of larger fields, which currently account for the vast majority of its oil production and to the execution of its complex enhanced oil recovery projects."

Dr Mohammad Bin Hamed Al Rumhy Omani minister of oil & gas said that "I am very happy to see that two Omani companies have won this important contract to develop the Rima fields. The contract was awarded on the basis of a highly competitive open tender in which more than 200 companies from both Oman and abroad participated."

PDO, which produces nearly 80% of Oman's crude oil and almost all of its natural gas output, is focusing its resources primarily on large fields within its sprawling Block 6 concession. With many of its productive fields maturing, the company is turning to resource intensive enhanced oil recovery techniques to reverse a decline in oil output. At the same time, it is also partnering with oilfield service providers to develop and operate its smaller producing assets.

Iran Uzbekistan trade value hits USD 650 million

Mehr News Agency reported that the trade volume of Iran and Uzbekistan stands at USD 650 million which can reach USD 1 billion in the future.

Mr Seyed Mohammad Beheshtian Iranian commercial attaché to Uzbekistan said that "Iran is Uzbekistan sixth trade partner."

Mr Beheshtian said that Uzbekistan, with a population of 27 million, is located in Central Asia and due to its common cultural background is considered as a great potential for Iran’s market.

Intekno Group may set up logistics centre in Qatar

Doha Times reported that Turkey based Intekno Group is keen to enter Qatar by initially establishing a logistics centre.

Mr Halil Kulluk president of Intekno said that "We are thinking of establishing a logistics centre to provide engineering, technology services and raw materials. What we want to do is not only limited to Qatar but for the entire Gulf region using Doha as the base." He added that Qatar’s location is ideal from a logistics angle because of its central location in the Middle East region.

Mr Kulluk said that his company is expected to begin operations in Qatar next year and made it clear the group is yet to find a suitable Qatari partner. He added that "Our mission is to improve the global competitiveness of industrial companies by enhancing their exports, transferring advanced technologies, improving their investment capabilities and establishing strategic alliances in the international markets."

Intekno identifies and promotes opportunities through strategic applications of technology and commercial capabilities and has wide a customer base in sectors such as metal, cement, contracting, mining, petrochemicals, glass, paper and financing. Apart from technology transfer activities, it also deals with international marketing of consumables and other sectors like steel, mining, electric and electronics, telecommunications and energy power plants.

Intekno’s activities range from steel and mining, financing and sugar extraction from herbs for nutraceutical and pharmaceutical companies.

Prices of key construction materials in MEA up by 25% YoY

The recent study by the Dubai Chamber of Commerce & Industry shows that prices of construction materials are soaring again after a period of relative stability. This shows demand for construction materials has been growing faster than supply, causing shortages in some areas and subsequently affecting prices.

Due to the high consumption, steel prices have increased sharply in the local markets, increasing on an average of 22% in the first quarter of 2008 across the Middle East.

USD per tonne

The study also shows that the average cement price in Dubai increased by more than 50% in March2008 and other construction materials that use cement as a component such as concrete and ready mix saw stiff price increases.

As most of the new construction projects in the Middle East are in the UAE, particularly Dubai, the cement market in the country is pressured to meet this huge demand.

(Sourced from Gulf News)

Al Rostmani eyeing majority stake in GHCL

BS reported that Al Rostmani group is planning to pick up a majority stake in Gujarat Heavy Chemicals Limited for an estimated investment of INR 700 crore.

While the promoters of GHCL are looking at offloading 15% stake to Al Rostmani, the conglomerate is looking to acquire 35% stake followed by an open offer of 20% to the public. The promoter group currently holds close to 47% stake in GHCL.

The offer price is expected to be around INR 200 a share, the price at which the conversion of the company's FCCB warrants is due. The warrants were issued in September 2005 and the conversion was to take place at INR 197 a share by March 2008. At an offer price of INR 200 a share, GHCL will have a market capitalization of around INR 2000 crore.

Mr Dalmia will continue to be the group chairman even if Al Rostmani gets hold of majority stake in GHCL. Al Rostmani might put a couple of directors on the board if the deal gets through.

GHCL, which started off as a soda ash company, later diversified into home textile manufacturing. In 2006, GHCL acquired Rosebys and entered the specialized retailing business overseas. It followed it up with the acquisition of institutional textile distribution firms in the US. The idea was to become a fully integrated home textile company with presence across spinning, weaving, product design and development, sourcing and distribution to retail stores.

Iran starts construction of Iraqi Al Sadr power plant

Tehran Times reported that Iran has started the executive operation of Iraq’s Al Sadr power plant.

It may be noted that Iranian contractors Sanir and Ameran Ofoq companies have won the tender for constructing a gas fed power plant with 315 MW capacity in Iraq’s Al Sadr city, amid fierce competition from China and Europe. Iran’s MAPNA Company is also responsible for providing the plant’s equipment including two gas-fed generator turbines with total capacity of 315 MW, transformers and spare parts.

The turn key project will be in the form of engineering procurement construction and will be done by Sanir and Ameran Ofoq companies. The project will be implemented in 2 years. The first unit will be completed 22 months after the land is given to the Iranian contractors and the other unit two month later.

Sanir and Ameran Ofoq companies should also provide a 132 KW post and 60 apartment units in the plant’s area. The project’s letter of credit has been opened and soon after the Iraqi side provides the land.

Munda Dam Project delayed for 2 years due to bottlenecks

Daily Times reported that Munda Dam Project has delayed for 2 more years, consequently would result an escalation cost of USD 1.75 billion against the estimated cost of USD 1.2 billion.

Mr Ahmed Masood Chaudhry MD of Munda Multipurpose Dam Project said that the project had been delayed due to bottlenecks. He added that the MMDP sponsor, Munda Hydropower Limited has refused to work in JV with Water & Power Development Authority under public private partnership program.

He said the sponsors have obtained injunction from Islamabad High Court through an order dated June 4th 2008 that has directed the federal government and its agencies of Private Power & Infrastructure Board and WAPDA. He added that they had spent USD 15 million on the feasibility report on the project that was formally approved by PPIB and PPIB issued their approval letter to MHL on November 11th 2006.

He said that MHL was issued a letter of interest to develop MMDP located on River Swat in the NWFP. The project envisages generation of 740 MW of electricity and has a storage capacity of 1.2 million acre feet to augment the irrigation requirements of NWFP and mitigation of flood losses created by Swat River. In accordance with stipulations of the approval letter, MHL was to approach National Electric Power Regulatory Authority for tariff negotiations.

However, the Ministry of water & power prevented the sponsor to do so on the plea that the ministry was considering alternations in the feasibility developed dam parameters. Ministry of water & power failed to intimate the sponsor the extent and nature of alternations which was most essentially required to study and change in the design implications based on site conditions.

He further added that sponsor was kept in dark and suspense for more than 15 months after the feasibility approval and were unable to proceed with the project development, despite the fact that the sponsor had amply demonstrated their financial strength to develop the project including firm commitment letters from two independent international financing agencies making commitments for providing financing for the entire MMDP up to USD 1.2 billion.

Al Habtoor and Murray & Roberts to construct Trump Hotel

Arabian Business reported that Dubai World owned Nakheel has awarded a JV of Al Habtoor and Murray & Roberts a contract worth USD 790 million for the construction of the Trump International Hotel and Tower on the Palm Jumeirah.

Construction of the project will begin in July 2008 with a completion date set for May 2011. Work involves a 62 storey structure, which is set to become a focal point of the Palm Jumeirah. The 270 meters design, which has a total gross built up area in excess of 250,000 square meters, will feature two towers that rise above the Palm Monorail and central park.

The development comprises a unit mix of 378 hotel rooms and suites, 385 condominiums, 12 townhouses, and 4189 square meters of retail and 5574 square meters of office space. Trump International Hotel and Tower Dubai is the only planned mixed use development in Dubai under the Trump name. The project is the first JV between Nakheel and The Trump Organization.

Al Habtoor Leighton Group was established following the merger of Al Habtoor Engineering with the Arabian Gulf operations of Leighton International. The new entity immediately became the UAE's largest construction group, with revenue of over USD 1.6 billion in 2007.

Murray & Roberts is a South African construction and engineering group specializing in a number of regions across the world including the Middle East.

Update on Chinese steel, iron ore and coal output in May 2008

According to latest data released by the National Bureau of Statistics China's crude steel production in May up by 10.5% YoY to 46.01 million tonnes and 216.11 million tonnes for the first five months up by 9.4% YoY

China churns out some 75.49 million tonnes of crude iron ore in May and 310.91 million tonnes for January to May up by 28% YoY and 26% respectively over same period last year.

(In million tonnes)

(Sourced from MySteel.net)

Chinese HRC export offers further increase

It is reported that export offers for Chinese hot rolled steel coil have been further raised again despite dull domestic market. As a matter of fact, there have been transactions at the updated levels.

Domestic HRC prices see a little decrease. On Shanghai market, price for commercial 4.75mm to 12mm*1500mm HRC is at CNY 5830 per tonne to CNY 5850 per tonne down by CNY 20 per tonne to CNY 30 per tonne. That for 1800mm wide material remains at CNY 6200 per tonne. Q235 2.75mm HRC drop to CNY 6030 per tonne.

Export offers for commercial 4.75mm to 12mm HRC by tier two steel producers are prevailing at USD 1030 per tonne to USD 1040 per tonne FOB this week up by USD 10 per tonne to USD 20 per tonne from last week. There is an extra of USD 10 per tonne for S235JR and another USD 20 per tonne to USD 30 per tonne for those with requirement of silicon content under 0.03%

By comparison; those by tier one steel makers are at USD 1060 per tonne to USD 1100 per tonne FOB for commodity grade 3.0mm up. Some traders mentioned that there has been conclusion at USD 1070 per tonne FOB.

Lots of traders are still taking wait and see attitude since they are not confident whether such high price would sustain for a long period. They still wish to take material at about USD 980 per tonne FOB. However, some exporters continue to take position at USD 41020 per tonne to USD 1030 per tonne FOB and the delivery is expected to be July or early August. A certain famous trader is said to be holding position of Chinese commercial HRC at EUR 720 per tonne CFR European ports.

According to Mysteel under such circumstances, export prices are expected to move up further and the strength would sustain in June.

(Sourced from MySteel.net)

Kunming to invest in V2O5 project

Kunming Iron and Steel announced that it will invest CNY 150 million in Yunnan Yuxi to build a V2O5 project with an annual output of 4,000 tonnes. The project is expected to put into production by the first quarter of 2009.

According to the release, V2O5 project is to use the vanadium residue, which is extracted by Yuxi Xingxin Iron and Steel Company, to further processed into high value added V2O5 products.

The production value of the project is expected to reach CNY 900 million after it is completed, filling the vanadium industry blank of Yunnan province.

Esteel producing high carbon strip steel

It is reported that Esteel has recently adjusted the products structure and is constantly optimizing the process line for high grade carbon strip steel by using converter instead of the furnace.

As per report 50 high grade carbon strip steel is widely used in the manufacture of chain bar, chain patch, tape measure etc is a high value added product, the market demand is large. Esteel 50 high grade carbon strip steel was all long produced by electric cooker, the production cost was high.

In order to meet the market demand, improve the product competitiveness, Esteel accelerated the adjustment of product structure, and decided to use convert to produce 50 high grade carbon strip steel.

Jigang Steel predicts H1 net profit up by 50% YoY

China Knowledge reported that Jinan Iron and Steel Co Ltd, a major domestic steel producer in East China's Shandong Province, expects that its net profit in H1 2008 would be up by 50% YoY. It had reported a net profit of CNY 672.14 million last year.

Jinan Iron and Steel Co Ltd attributed the improving performance expectations to outstanding achievements of structural adjustment and the development of energy saving. Meanwhile, the significant rise in steel prices in the H1 2008 comparing to the same period of 2007 will also be a contributing factor for the profit surge.

Jinan Iron and Steel an oversize steel corporation issued 220 million A shares and listed on the Shanghai Stock Exchange in June 2004. The company now has net assets of CNY 3.44 billion with 11,926 employees.

Ansteel posts 27.3% YoY growth in crude steel in 5 months

It is reported that from January to May 2008, Ansteel realized sales revenue of CNY 22.6 billion up by CNY 10.7 billion and realized profits taxes of CNY 1.57 billion up by CNY 383 million, mainly due to high levels of production.

According to the statistics that from January to May this year, Ansteel totally produced 4.17 million tonnes of steel up by 27.38% YoY, 3.66 million tonnes of pig iron up by 33.07% YoY and 3.68 million tonnes of finished steel up by 33.35% YoY.

Chinese industrial output up by 16% YoY in May

According to National Bureau of Statistics the industrial output of China's major enterprises up by 16.0% YoY in May. The increase was 0.3 percentage points higher than April and 2.1 percentage points lower than May last year.

Mr Zhang Yansheng head of the Research Institute of Foreign Trade and Economic Cooperation under the National Development and Reform Commission said "The industrial output slowed down despite the fact that the week long May Day holiday was shortened to three days this year, which gave the country a longer working month."

He said that the slower growth to the government's efforts to prevent the economy from going overheated. The January to May industrial output up by 16.3% YoY, 1.8 percentage points lower than the same period of last year.

Analysts said the growth in some sectors was likely driven by the surge in demand following the catastrophic earthquake in mid-May. After the quake which destroyed factories and houses, the country began constructing temporary settlement areas for the survivors and rebuilding infrastructure facilities in the affected regions.

The output of power and coal rose 11.8% and 18.5% respectively; crude steel was up by 10.5%; Motor vehicles rose 21.7% among which cars rose 17.6%. Crude oil output reached 16.2 million tonnes, a modest rise of 1.8% YoY from a year earlier.

The sales ratio of industrial products was 98.0% an increase of 0.1 percentage points over last May. This figure measured the part of production that were sold rather than those went into

Chinese production of ferroalloy in May up by 20.2% YoY

It is reported that China productions of ferroalloy of different province total 1779.8 tonnes in May 2008 up by 20.2% YoY as compared to 1480.3 tonnes in May 2007.

The province wise ferroalloys export is under