The variation in newly developed indices for steel products in India reflects that on the whole, steel prices witnessed a sever dip in both long and flat category on Friday.

PPI – Long Product Price Index
FPPI – Flat Product Price Index
ISPI – Indian Steel Price Index

The dip is seen across all categories in both long and flat products, except for wire rods

Long products

Flat products

To know more about these indices please visit http://steelguru.com/priceindex/spi

To know the daily movement of these benchmark products in the important locations across India, please subscribe to the daily pricing services of www.steelprices-india.com

(Sourced from www.steelprices-india.com)

It is reported that India's Supreme Court allowed POSCO to build its USD 12 billion steel plant in the eastern state of Orissa. The court in an order said that POSCO can buy iron ore from the market.

South Korean steel maker POSCO’s Indian unit POSCO India Private Limited got the approval to go ahead with its plans by a special environmental bench of the Supreme Court, headed by Chief Justice K G Balakrishnan.

The apex court has also cleared forest diversion proposal for the plant site, which require 1253.225 hectares of forest land. It also asked the state government to send its recommendations to the Ministry of Environment and Forests, which would proceed in accordance with law.

Moreover, the apex court has directed the Orissa Government to dispose of all POSCO's applications seeking prospecting licenses within four weeks.

Mr Vikash Sharan of POSCO expressing happiness said that “We reiterate our firm commitment to the project and are determined to move ahead in terms of land preparation and construction activities at full speed.”

Mr Saran told Business Line that there are still several steps before the company finally gets possession of the land to start work. He said “Following the court order, the Ministry of Environment & Forest will issue an executive order to the Orissa Government stipulating certain conditions and the State Government will have to send back a compliance report. After the MoEF sends another order, the district administration will hand over the land.”

Land disputes and delays in allocating mining licenses have stopped POSCO from proceeding with potentially the biggest overseas investment in India. POSCO is yet to begin building the 12 million tonne steel plant in Orissa state although work was scheduled to start in April 2007.

Indian government has assured domestic steel makers that the government would ensure availability of adequate inputs for steel producers in a bid to ensure that they do not raise steel prices.

Mr PK Rastogi steel secretary while addressing Steel Summit said that the ministry would shortly be organizing a dialogue process with steel manufacturers to formally assure them availability of inputs like iron ore at affordable prices to help them maintain the present price levels.

Mr Rastogi said that “Since raw materials and input costs for making steel had risen steeply in the past and steel manufacturers had given the government a categorical assurance that they would not resort to price rise, the government would like to cooperate with them in terms of making available inputs at affordable rates.”

PTI reported that the long term expansion plans of steel major JSW Steel are likely to be affected if its operating margin continues to be under pressure.

Mr Sajjan Jindal vice CMD of JSW Steel on the sidelines of the 2nd India Steel Summit told media that "Our vision to produce 32 million tonnes of steel by 2020 may be affected if pressure continues to be on our margins, thereby resulting in a decline in surplus production and growth.”

Mr Jindal however said that he does not foresee any major effect of shrinking margins and holding of the price line on the company's short-term expansion plan to reach 11 million tonnes of production by next year. He said "Our plan to reach 11 million tonnes of steel production by next year is on track and the financial dealings for the same have been closed.”

JSW Steel plans to invest INR 100,000 crore to reach 32 million tonnes of steel production capacity by 2020. It has proposed two Greenfield projects in West Bengal and Jharkhand besides expansion of its present capacity from 5 million tonnes to 8 million tonnes.

JSW’s margins are under pressure due to increase in input costs and freeze on steel prices since. JSW Steel's profits for the first quarter declined to INR 219.35 crore as against INR 468.45 crore in the year ago period.

BL reported that in order to overcome the problem of low draft in the Hooghly river near Haldia dock, Steel Authority of India Limited is planning coastal movement of imported coal between Visakhapatnam and Paradip ports and Haldia and has accordingly invited bids from ship owners, coastal operators, brokers agents and others.

As per report, SAIL is planning to bring large vessels with full load at Paradip and Visakhapatnam ports which being sea ports do not suffer from the kind of navigability problems that afflict the river port such as Haldia.

As per report, part of the consignments to be unloaded at these ports will be reloaded in self propelled barges or smaller vessels for second round of discharge at Haldia. To start with, SAIL proposes to move by the coastal route an estimated 0.6 million tonnes of coal.

The draft restriction in the Hooghly River prevents large bulk carriers with sizeable parcel load to call at the Haldia dock. As per report, the problem has now become critical so much so that a 65,000 DWT bulk carrier can come to the dock with around 30,000 tonnes or so.

Haldia has been the most preferred port for handling imported coal for SAIL all its plants except Bhilai Steel Plant, which is served by the Visakhapatnam port, as the rail transportation cost of moving imported coal from Haldia to plants located at Durgapur, Bokaro, Burnpur and even Rourkela is the lowest.

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ET reported that the downstream steel industry has urged the government to ask the main steel companies to furnish data to justify their price hikes. It has called for more fiscal and administrative measures to keep a check on steel prices.

The industry alleged that even though TATA Steel and SAIL had by and large retained the basic price of HR coil at INR 36,000 per tonne since May 2008, other producers including JSW, Essar Steel and Ispat Industries, which account for about 70% of HRC production, have increased prices by INR 7,000 since May.

CORSMA in a letter to Mr Ram Vilas Paswan steel minister said that the export duty had an instant impact on prices and the duty was removed after the producers vowed to roll back prices to INR 36,000.

CORSMA noted that the prevailing prices of HR coils were not based on production costs. It said that “SAIL and TATA Steel no doubt have some inherent cost advantage over other producers due to captive iron ore mines but it is by and large offset by new technologies and better product mix.”

CORSMA thinks that in any case, the price differential of INR 10,000 between the 2 groups of producers is unjustified. SAIL and TATA Steel had also been operating on high margins, ranging from INR 7,000 to INR 10,000.

According to CORSMA, the linkage of domestic HR coil prices to spot global export prices is illogical and highly detrimental to the national interests as the prevailing global export prices are highly speculative, fuelled by the mismatch between the supply and demand mainly due to the restrictions imposed by China and some other countries on HR coil exports to promote export of value added steel and manufactured goods.

It is reported that Hindustan Zinc cut the prices of zinc by INR 3,500 tonne and that of lead by INR 6,000 tonne. The price revision would be effective from August 7th 2008.

The report added that zinc would now cost at INR 85,200 tonne while lead would now be available at INR 0.101 million tonne.

BS reported that SKS Power Limited will invest approximately INR 19,000 crore in Madhya Pradesh if the state government ensures raw material, land and water. SKS requires iron ore, manganese, dolomite and coal to give shape to its proposed investment plans.

It has recently signed a deal of INR 8,430 crore with the state government for an integrated steel plant complex which will be equipped with a captive power plant. It has planned a steel plant of 3.1 million tonnes per annum with a 545 MW captive power plant a 150 MW waste heat recovery boiler and a 450 MW ferroalloy plant.

Mr Gupta of SKS Ispat said that “We are very serious about investing in Madhya Pradesh and want to start work as fast as possible but we want the state government also to be serious and aggressive. We will produce 1.1 million tonnes of steel through the blast furnace route and 2 million tonnes through the sponge iron route. We will produce finished goods at the complex. This complex will also have a steel rolling mill of 2 million tonnes per annum of this 1.5 million tonnes will be MS steel and 500,000 tonnes wire rod, TMT products and special steel.”

It is reported that the Central Electricity Regulatory Commission has imposed in its recent order a penalty of INR 0.1 million on MP Power Trading Company Limited under Section 142 of the Electricity Act 2003.

CERC found the trading company guilty of non compliance of the CERC’s directions for liquidating the amount of unscheduled unterchange arrears which had piled up to IN 338 crore.

CERC has also issued a notice to the MD of the trading company as to why additional penalty should not be recovered from him in view of the provisions of law that the person in charge of and responsible for the conduct of business of the company guilty is also liable to be proceeded against and punished.

CERC said that over drawl from the grid and not making payment for the same were the symptoms not only of grid indiscipline but also of financial indiscipline, when seen in the light of the fact that the respondent has earned revenue through sale of power over drawn from the grid and this cannot be permitted.

It added that “Payment of UI charges is to bring about effective discipline in the system and the maintenance of grid discipline, the Commission emphasized that timely payment of UI charges is a duty owed by every utility to other grid connected entities as it contributes towards grid discipline.”

BS recently reported that RPG Group’s KEC International plans to foray into new businesses including railway projects construction of telecommunication towers and designing of substations, to boost the company’s sales from INR 2,854 crore now to INR 10,000 crore in the next five years.

As per report, KEC plans to bid for building transmission lines in the US and scout for acquisitions in that country to expand its business.

Mr Harsh Goenka chairman of RPG said that “We are chalking out strategies to become significant in America and may also look for acquisitions there.”

He said that the newfound aggression of KEC to foray into new areas of business stems from the group’s ambition to scale up KEC’s sales and tap the fast growing local and overseas segments. Mr Goenka said that KEC’s share of revenue in the overall business of the group is expected to remain 26 as other businesses of the group will also grow.

KEC, which has operations in 22 countries, earns about 70% of its business from overseas markets, mainly from developing countries and has about INR 4,700 crore of total orders. US is expected to spend USD 60 billion in five years to upgrade and add new transmission lines to overcome power shortage.

BL reported that the recent notification of Director General Shipping providing exemptions under the Merchant Shipping Act 1958 for construction, survey, certification and operation of River Sea Ships is likely to benefit several private sector shipyards as it is targeted at integrating inland water transportation and coastal shipping.

The new regulation exempts ships other than passenger ships, oil tankers and off shore support vessels operating along the Indian coast and within the territorial waters from the provisions of MS Act 1958. These provisions were not necessary for the inland and coastal shipping.

The objective of the recent legislation is to provide standards of construction, safe operation and certification rules for river-sea vessels on the Indian coast; safely integrate seaborne trade, from inland waters to coastal waters and vice versa. For the user, there will be a cost effective way of moving goods along the coast with more ships moving within the minor port. It will fill up the gaps that exist today in coastal shipping and there will be a sizeable amount of cargo moving on the coastal route without transshipment or delay.

According to Mr George Vurgese director of Kochi based Lots Shipping, this amendment of the MS Act brings into focus the bold thrust that is required to boost short sea shipping activities on the Indian coast at the same time allow its integration with Inland water ways, keeping the activities separate at the same time binding them under the MS Act. He added that the new regulation will bring better prospects across an entire spectrum of operations. He added that it will open up a new area for designers, builders, operators, Tran shippers etc, where several companies are poised to take full advantage of the new legislation.

According to Dr S Jeevan CEO of Samudra Shipyard Limited, the new rules would be a shot in the arm for the coastal shipping sector and the builders as there would be significant reduction in the construction costs by dispensing with requirements under international laws and regulations. As a result, capital expenditure would be substantially reduced. He said that now vessels can be built to ply in backwaters and sea at reasonable costs for economically viable operations. Benefiting most would be the union territories, Lakshadweep and the Andamans where the only economical mode of inter island transport is by sea. Many enquiries for charter vessels for tour operations could not move further from the drawing board, earlier.

Dr S Jeevan that while the costal shipping sector witnesses booming activity in design, consultancy, building and operations, the tourism sector will have a plethora of activities such as vessels for sports fishing, scuba diving, sailing etc. bringing in millions of dollars as foreign exchange. He added that with choked roads and the near impossible scope for road expansion, States such as Kerala can reap the benefit of the new Act by moving cargo along the coast and through the river or backwater system.

River Sea shipping has been popular in Europe and Russia where there has been seamless integration of navigable rivers such as the Volga, Danube and Seine with the Black Sea, Baltic Sea, Sea of Azov and North Sea respectively.

It is reported that the total approximate earnings of Indian Railways on originating basis during April 1st to July 31st 2008 were INR 26397.04 crore up by 21.14% YoY as compared to INR 21791.20 crore during the same period last year.

The report added that total goods earnings have gone up from INR 14587.55 crore during April 1st to July 31st2007 to INR 18187.71 crore during April 1st to July 31st2008 an increase of 24.68%

The total passenger revenue earnings during first four months of the financial year 2008-09 were INR 7207.33 crore as compared to INR 6331.17 crore during the same period last year, registering an increase of 13.84% The revenue earnings from other coaching amounted to INR 659.18 crore during April to July 2008 as compared to INR 611.87 crore during the same period last year, an increase of 7.73%.

ET reported that nuclear power business is all set to emerge as the next big rush for Indian firms as many of them seem to be making a beeline for a piece of the nuclear power business pie. As per report, the companies, which have expressed interest in nuclear power business, includes JSW Steel, ONGC and L&T.

JSW steel recently said that it is keen to jump into the bandwagon. Mr Sajjan Jindal vice CMD of JSW Steel recently said that “We want to foray into nuclear power. We are talking to global majors.” The group, through its power generation subsidiary JSW Energy is planning to either enter into a JV or a technology tie up with a global major.

Oil and gas major ONGC said it would start mining uranium with Uranium Corporation of India. ONGC’s international uranium mining operations will be handled by a new JV company, ONGC UCI through a 74:26 partnership. The collaboration will leverage ONGC’s expertise in exploration of hydrocarbons to commercially exploit uranium.

Engineering and constructions major L&T is also hopeful of foraying into reactor manufacturing.

Mr SK Malhotra director of atomic energy said that “The international community as well as the domestic companies are too eager to enter the nuclear power generation arena and they are looking forward to the Indo US nuke deal. It is a good sign and they have been waiting for long.”

However, private sector players are yet to be allowed an entry into nuclear power generation. It will require an amendment of the existing Atomic Energy Act.

It is reported that Power Grid Corporation of India is planning an investment of INR 9,436 crore for its various projects by March 2009.

AS per reports, PGCIL said that the investment approvals comprise common scheme for network for all the four regions at an estimated cost of INR 7,075.33 crore, supplementary transmission system associated with Damodar Valley Corporation and Maithon right bank projects, at an estimated cost of INR 2,360.95 crore. The scheme is scheduled to be commissioned within 48 months, from the date of investment approval.

PGCIL in JV with Teesta Urja is developing transmission system to evacuate power from 1,200 MW Teesta-III Hydro Electric Project in Sikkim. The project is being developed on BOO basis on 70:30 debt equity ratio. It is scheduled to be completed by September 2011. It will also provide transmission capacity to various private hydro-electric power projects being developed in North Sikkim. The company holds 26% in the INR 708 crore project.

It is reported that Rashtriya Ispat Nigam Limited has taken up Jaladhara scheme for supply of filtered and piped drinking water to 4 villages in Dumbriguda mandal.

RINL said that “The scheme is unique under which small check dams were constructed across natural streams and springs. Water is then tapped and taken to a filter tank which is filled with sand, gravel and bricks where the water gets filtered. Further, the water is connected to a ground level service reservoir with tap points.”

It said that tribals are very excited over the scheme.

Bloomberg reported that Hero Honda Motors Limited India's biggest motorcycle maker increased prices for the second time this year to counter higher steel costs.

Mr Ravi Sud CFO said in a telephone interview said that prices were increased by as much as INR 1,500 from August 1st 2008. The company's 100cc motorcycles will cost as much as INR 850.

Project today reported that the unit 3 & 4 of Guru Hargobind power plant also known as Lehra Mohabbat power project near Bhatinda will go fully commercial by end October 2008 nearly 15 months behind schedule.

As per report, the project is delayed because of poor regulations and procedures by Bharat Heavy Electricals, the EPC contractor of the project which in turn has resulted in substantial power shortages. BHEL is likely to pay Punjab State Electricity Board a penalty of up to 5% of the total cost of the project.

The report added that other projects where BHEL is the EPC contractor have also been delayed like Amarkantak, Chandrapura and Bellary.

It is reported that Mr Jairam Ramesh minister of state for commerce and Power after a day long review of progress at the site recently saying that the 2 250 MW units at the Guru Hargobind Thermal Power Plant at Lehra Mohabbat near Bhatinda will go fully commercial by end October nearly 15th months behind schedule.

Mr YP Ratra chairman of the PSEB briefed the minister on the expansion plans of power generation in Punjab
1. Two additional 250 MW units at Lehra Mohabbat
2. Two additional 250 MW units at the Guru Nanak Dev Thermal Power Plant in Bhatinda
3. 3x660 MW units at Talwandi Sabo to be put up by Sterlite Industries
4. 2x250 MW units at Gobindwal to be put up by GVK Group
5. 660 MW or 800 MW units are being planned at Rajpura and Gidderbah

Mr Ramesh complimented the Punjab State Electricity Board for running the 2 existing 210 MW units at Lehra Mohabbat at efficiency over 37% which is among the highest in the country.

The PSEB Engineers Association also represented to the minister that the centre should not insist that PSEB should be unbundled which is a requirement under the Electricity Act 2003. The Association felt that the experience with independent regulators has not been a success in Punjab and the state government has delayed subsidy payments to the PSEB which it is required to provide on time so that PSEB can fulfill its social obligations.

It is reported that Bharat Heavy Electricals has won its first commercial order worth INR 25 billion for the supply of 800 MW steam generators boilers from Andhra Pradesh Power Development Company for the 1,600 MW Krishnapatnam power project in the Nellore district of Andhra Pradesh in India.

Bharat Heavy Electricals's scope of work in the contract envisages manufacture, supply, erection, testing and commissioning of the steam generators and associated auxiliaries including electrostatic precipitators.

For the project, the boilers will be manufactured by BHEL at its Tiruchirapalli works in the state of Tamil Nadu, while the company's Hyderabad and Ranipet plants will supply the coal mills and the ESPs, respectively.

It is reported that all steps have been taken for ensuring expeditious implementation of the Jayamkondam Lignite Power Project in Ariyalur district.

Mr A Raja union minister for communication & information technology said that the preliminary works on the project will commence by January next year. He added that the state government was prepared to pay to land owners the compensation fixed by the special courts without further appeal. Jobs for educationally qualified legal heirs would also be ensured.

Mr Raja said that an all party campaign would also be launched in and around Jayamkondam to sensitize the masses about the advantages of the project and also to dispel the false propaganda being made by a section of the political parties against its implementation.

Since the post of the chairman cum MD in Neyveli Lignite Corporation was vacant, there was some delay in the execution of the JLPP. An exclusive meeting would be held next month with the officials of the Neyveli Lignite Corporation for the implementation of the project.

Project today reported that Kerala government has decided in principle to convert Ponnani Port in Malappuram district into an all weather port through PPP basis.

Chennai based Malabar Port has submitted a preliminary proposal to the state government in this regard and has been assigned to prepare a detailed project report to develop the port on BOT basis. The government has accorded sanction to adopt the Swiss Challenge method for identifying the private partner for the project through a global tender. Accordingly, the DPR being prepared by Malabar Port will be examined by a consultant to be appointed by the government for technical and economic feasibility.

As per the report, Malabar Port will not participate in the global tender but will be offered the opportunity to match the best bid terms received. If it does so, the company will be selected to develop the port and run it commercially.

The selected investor will not be given any financial assistance by the government for supporting infrastructure such as rail connectivity, widening of the roads, water supply and electricity at any stage of the development process. The Government will only act as a facilitator for the project.

The proposed port will be developed into a deep water port capable of handling vessels of around 50,000 DWT and is estimated to cost about INR 1,500 crore. The concession period under the BOT agreement will be 30 years. After the concession period, if the government decides to bid the project again, the right of first refusal may be given to the original developer.

BL reported that while welcoming the relaxation in the restriction of peak hour use of electricity by industrial consumers announced by Tamil Nadu Electricity Board, the small and tiny industries here have made an appeal for relaxation of power holiday.

Mr N Somasundaram vice president of Madurai District Tiny & Small Scale Industries Association said that for the last few months the productivity of small industries remained paralyzed due to the power cut daily between 6 pm and 10 pm and the weekly power holiday declared on Friday.

A representation was made by small industry associations led by Maditssia demanding uninterrupted power supply on July 31st. Heeding to the request TNEB has immediately relaxed the restriction on peak hour use by industrial consumers.

Mr Somasundaram said that with the reported improvement in the generation of power from wind mills, it is hoped that the situation would be further eased to enable normal productivity with relaxation of power holiday announced by the Government on Friday.

Maharashtra State Power Generation Co (Mahagenco) placed an order for purchase of power equipment worth INR 2,691 crore with Bharat Heavy Electricals for a plant at Chandrapur.

The equipment comprising boilers, turbines and generators are meant for the power plant at Chandrapur in eastern Maharashtra, where Mahagenco is setting up two units each with a capacity of 500 MW. The commercial generation of power from one of the two units is scheduled to start from December 2011, while the other facility will begin functioning from March 2012.

Reuters reported that South Korea's Hyundai Steel has signed a term deal with Australian miner Rio Tinto to receive at least 1 million tonnes of coal per year. The contract for coking coal, used in steel production, will be valid from April 2009 to March 2019.

Hyundai Steel has a similar deal with another Australian firm Wesfarmers Limited for 500,000 tonnes of coal per year from April 2009 to 2014. It aims to secure about 90% of its coal needs by sealing major coal contracts within the third quarter.

JMB reported that Nippon Steel started additional price negotiation with Japanese makers of appliances and office equipments offering JPY 15,000 per tonne hike for sheet steel for October 2008 shipment.

As per report, Nippon Steel tries to get additional increase to cover higher cost for raw materials when the firm cannot absorb the cost only by own effort though the firm already won JPY 20,000 to JPY 25,000 hike for April 2008 shipment. It also started study for additional hike for domestic distributors and re rollers.

Focus News Agency reported that Bulgarian economy & energy ministry has welcomed the ruling of the Sofia City Court to declare the Kremikovtzi steel mill insolvent.

The ministry believed that the court decision would enable Kremikovtzi in the short term to restore its business in full, be reserved production and jobs and to be generated sufficient financial resources to be directed to environmental measures and the mill's viability, with a view to obtaining a comprehensive permit

Mr Lyudmil Pavlov chairman of trade union of Metallurgists with the Confederation of Labor Podkrepa said that "We are happy with the court's decision to declare Kremikovtzi insolvent. From now on the road is open to all who want to work with Kremikovtzi, not only for Konstantyn Zhevago because other people may come."

Earlier on August 6th 2008, the Sofia City Court had ruled that the ailing steel mill was insolvent, opening the way for its sale. A court media statement said that the court had opened a bankruptcy case and appointed a temporary receiver for the mill.

Global Steel Holding Limited, a subsidiary of Indian steel maker Ispat Industries, owns 71% of Kremikovtzi. Kremikovtzi employs labor 8000 people and supports the livelihoods of another 90000 indirectly.

Sidenor Group has posted consolidated turnover of EUR 858 million in January to June 2008 period up by 17.1% YoY as against EUR 733 million in January to June 2007 period. Consolidated profit before tax amounted to EUR 124 million up by 21% YoY while, EBITDA amounted to EUR 164.8 million up by 17% YoY.

Consolidated net after tax and minorities profit marked a 13% YoY increase approximately and formed at EUR 77.8 million versus EUR 69 million. Finally, especially regarding the Group's steel products division, the corresponding turnover marked a 32% YoY increase versus 1st half of 2007, while EBITDA increased by 40% YoY approximately.

More specifically regarding the second quarter of 2008, consolidated turnover amounted to EUR 471.5 million up by 22% QoQ and 34% YoY increased over the second quarter of 2007, consolidated profits before tax amounted to EUR 90.8 million up by 173% QoQ over EUR 33 million in first quarter and over EUR 49.8 million up by 82% YoY against in the second quarter of 2007. EBITDA reached EUR 112 million up by 112% QoQ and 61% YoY over the respective second quarter of 2007.

Finally, the first quarter consolidated net after tax and minorities profit formed at EUR 53 million up by 113% QoQ and 58% YoY increase over the respective second quarter of 2007.

The US Department of Commerce has made a preliminary determination that manufacturers in China, Vietnam and South Africa are dumping uncovered innerspring units for mattresses in the US market.

Chinese mandatory respondents Foshan Jingxin Steel Wire & Spring Company Limited and Soho International Group Holding Company Limited received preliminary anti dumping margins of 118.17% and 234.51%, respectively. The latter respondent’s rate is based on adverse facts available as it failed to cooperate to the best of its ability in the investigation.

In addition, seven Chinese respondents qualified for a separate rate of 118.17%. All other Chinese exporters are subject to the China wide rate of 234.51%. The preliminary anti dumping margins for South Africa and Vietnam are 121.39% and 116.31%, respectively.

The merchandise covered by these investigations includes uncovered innerspring units composed of a series of individual metal springs joined together in sizes corresponding to the sizes of adult mattresses and units used in smaller constructions, such as cribs and youth mattresses.

BGNES News Agency quoted Mr Viktor Demeniuk director of Ukrainian company Vorksla Steel "We are continuing to act according to the contract for supply of resources to Kremikovtzi. We are glad from the court's decision to declare the factory insolvent and to appoint a syndic, chosen by us."

Mr Demeniuk expressed his satisfaction from the date since which Kremikovtzi has been declared insolvent December 31st 2005 as well as from the fact that the current management can no longer control his assets and liabilities.

He added that "We expect the syndic to start work in the factory. Vorksla Steel is interested in the privatization of Kremikovtzi."

He further added that "We have already prepared an urgent eco program for the amount of EUR 30 million and we are hoping to receive the complex permit for work of the factory. The privatization must pass through a recuperative program. Vorksla will start disbursement of salaries to the workers after the syndic starts work in Kremikovtzi."

Metals manufacturer and processor Gibraltar Industries Inc has posted earnings of USD 20.1 million in April to June 2008 quarter up by 68.9% YoY as compared with USD 11.9 million in April to June 2007 quarter. Revenue rose by 6% YoY to USD 379.2 million.

For 2008, the company expects earnings between USD 1.50 a share and USD 1.65 a share, from continuing operations. It had previously forecast earnings of USD 1.05 to USD 1.25 a share.

Mr Henning Kornbrekke COO of Gibraltar Industries said that "By aggressively lowering Gibraltar's cost structure and continuing to improve our margins, we have been able to offset lower volumes in 2 of our primary markets."

Dow Jones Newswires reported that Australia's biggest ports & rail operator Asciano Group may sell some of its assets as it reported a net loss for the year. It delivered a net loss of USD 182.1 million for the year to June 30th 2008. EBITDA, before significant items, increased by 10.1% YoY to USD 677.7 million in the period from June 15th 2007 to June 30th 2008.

It said that "For the July 1st 2007 to June 30th 2008 period, EBITDA before significant items was USD 652.9 million, in line with Asciano's previous market guidance."

Mr Mark Rowsthorn CEO of Asciano said that the company wanted a partner or partners that would continue to invest in the business and hoped to raise between 800 million and one billion dollars from asset sales. He added that "The decision on which businesses to monetize hasn't been reached yet. All businesses are going through an intensive capital planning process, and on the basis of finalizing those we'll have a clearer picture in terms of which businesses we will look at."

Mr Rowsthorn said that Asciano had received many approaches from parties interested in taking stakes in the group's assets but did not elaborate.

Asciano operates container ports in Melbourne, Sydney, Brisbane and Fremantle and auto, bulk and general cargo services across more than 30 ports in Australia and New Zealand. It is a major provider of coal and grain haulage and transports other bulk commodities through its Australia-wide Pacific National rail freight business.

Post Tribune reported that an ArcelorMittal supervisor lost both legs when a rail car carrying coal inside the Burns Harbor plant rolled over him. The state department of occupational health & safety began an investigation.

Mr Sean Keefer of Indiana Department of Labor said that state & federal regulations may not have required the steelmaker or the union to alert labor officials of the accident. Employers are required to notify the state about fatalities or accidents that hospitalize 3 or more workers, or, in some cases, involve an amputation injury.

Mr Keefer said that "They did nothing wrong by not reporting the accident. We are conducting an investigation to see what happened. A joint management and union investigation was immediately launched after the accident. Our thoughts and best wishes go out to the family and friends of the injured."

Union leaders with the United Steelworkers are negotiating a new contract with the multinational steel corporation to replace a 2003 agreement that expires this month. Workplace safety issues have been featured prominently in the talks after a rise in serious and fatal accidents since the former Mittal Steel took over the plants in Burns Harbor and East Chicago three years ago.

NanoSteel Company Inc has announced the commercial availability of a new Super Hard Steel(R) alloy, SHS 8000, for coating solutions in the power generation industry that improves reliability and availability and increases the lifetime of pressure parts over leading industry standard coatings.

SHS 8000 is a cored wire solution for twin wire arc thermal spraying that excels in the elevated temperature environments of pulverized coal and fluidized bed boilers. SHS 8000 features an ultra refined crystalline microstructure, up to a thousand times finer than existing solutions, resulting in exceptional corrosion, erosion and wear resistance, a unique high hardness toughness combination and extremely high bond strength without the necessity of a bond coat.

Mr Dave Paratore president & CEO of NanoSteel said that "SHS 8000 offers superior performance to current industry standard coatings. SHS 8000 will reduce maintenance costs, minimize unplanned outages from tube failure and feature excellent field repairability."

NanoSteel develops and markets a patented portfolio of Super Hard Steel nano structured alloy coating, overlay and wear plate solutions that effectively solve or alleviate many operational challenges faced in critical industries today, including wear, erosion and corrosion in a wide range of complex service environments.

Industrial firm Barloworld said that it had re priced its 10% broad based black economic empowerment initiative owing to the rerating of the South African equities market as well as the Barloworld share price.

Mr Clive Thomson CEO of Barloworld said that "It is important for our BEE transaction to be sustainable into the future. Owing to the recent rerating of the South African equities market and Barloworld share price since our announcement on June 12th 2008, our board has recommended re pricing the Barloworld black ownership initiative."

The BBBEE initiative had originally been priced at ZAR 10,387 based on a 30 day volume weighted average share price of a Barloworld ordinary share, calculated for the 30 trading days ending June 6th 2008. It has now proposed that the price calculation date be amended to July 9th 2008, when the calculated 30 day volume weighted average share price of a Barloworld ordinary share was ZAR 8,331.

The revised economic cost of the transaction for shareholders has now been reduced to 2.8% of Barloworld's market capitalization, down from 3.2% previously.

The re pricing would ensure the sustainability of the black ownership initiative, as well as ensure that Barloworld's BEE credentials remained at the same level.

Japanese shipping giant NYK Line has posted a soaring first quarter net profit of JPY 44.3 billion, up by 54% YoY with bulk shipping leading the growth among the company’s various divisions. Overall revenue increased by 13% YoY to JPY 6.7 trillion from JPY 6.03 billion.

Of container shipping, NYK, said that "Revenues increased over the same period last year due to a recovery of freight rates to a certain degree on North American routes and a year on year rise in freight volumes amid low transport volumes on container routes overall. The increases in costs due to the sharp surge in bunker oil prices and other factors, however, resulted in a decline in performance compared with the same period last year."

It added that "Propped up by a vibrant demand from emerging nations such as China and India, the dry bulk carrier division experienced favorable sea transport volumes for iron and steel ores, coal, grains and other materials. The dry bulk market fluctuated wildly, reaching historic highs in mid May only to plummet in June. Results for the quarter overall, however, came in second only to the last year’s October to December term".

It is reported that Lafarge Gypsum has introduced an innovative alternative to the traditional brick and mortar house structure, with the launch of its Lightweight Steel Framed Housing solution which cuts construction time by a third. It has already received positive feedback from architects who have had exposure to the product in the form of accredited training.

The steel frames are manufactured and supplied by Lafarge Gypsum using the proven frame master technology from New Zealand, which has been installed and commissioned at Lafarge Gypsum’s Alrode plant site in Johannesburg.

Ms Jennifer McGill marketing & strategy manager at Lafarge Gypsum said that “An architect’ house plan is fed digitally into the frame master machine’s CAD program to create an optimized frame design. From this, the frame master then manufactures cut to length galvanized steel sections. The sections are assembled to form a complete house frame, including door and window frames, plus the roof trusses.”

According to Ms McGill, among the many reasons for the new structure being viewed by architects and developers as an attractive alternative, are its fast construction times and flexibility. She said that "The time required to complete a house is reduced by a third compared with traditional construction. The components of the frame can be partially or fully assembled in the factory and delivered directly to site leading to a quicker assembly on site. Once a section of the frame is in place, the builder can then move directly to exterior and interior cladding.”

Mr Braam de Villiers VP of Pretoria Institute of Architects sees Lafarge filling a big gap in the market with its Light Weight Steel Frame Housing solution, which he says provides an innovative alternative to the traditional brick structure and offers speedier construction times.

He added that “Because of the technical requirements needed to build the structure, I think it will ensure a better quality building, and it will create more skilled construction jobs. In terms of sustainability this construction will render a good thermal performance for the walls are well insulated. The construction method can also render a lower embodied energy as less material is utilized at a lower energy input.”

Lafarge Gypsum and the PIA recently co hosted a technical accredited training course to co incide with the launch of the new product themed creating innovative spaces with Lightweight Steel Frame housing, for 65 leading architects who got exposure to the new concept and trained on the technical aspects of the product.

Crucible Materials Corporation has named Mr David W Robbins as chairman of the board succeeding Mr John L Vensel, who retired last month after a 51 year career in the steel industry.

Crucible Materials is the parent company of Crucible Specialty Metals in Geddes and employs 1,200 including 700 locally.

In addition to Crucible Specialty Metals, it is the parent company of Crucible Compaction Metals and Cruicible Research in Pittsburgh, Crusteel Limited in Sheffield and Crucible Service Centers, which operates 15 warehouses in North America.

Sumitomo Electric Carbide Inc has introduces the all new AC830P for interrupted steel turning. The AC830P combines a tough substrate with a newly designed Super FF coating structure to substantially increase the wear resistance over conventional P30 material grades.

The AC830P's wear resistance not only exceeds conventional P30 coated carbide grades, its toughness greatly outperforms conventional P20 grades. The AC830P is available in a multitude of geometries coupled with chip breakers capable of machining light to heavy depths of cuts.

The AC830P grade, along with the precision engineered EGE chip breaker, excels in applications where a tough edge is needed. The EGE allows for up to 0.024 IPR while still providing excellent chip control.

Ann Joo Resources Berhad announced that Mr Lim Seng Qwee chairman of the company has retired from his position with immediate effect.

Material Sciences Corporation's Mr John Reilly is replacing Mr Ronald A Mitsch as non executive chairman of the board and Mr Mitsch, who has held the position since 2003, will remain a director.

Gulf Daily News reported that Bahrain construction industry received yet another boost with the news that a Saudi Arabian company is looking to finance a steel project in the country.

As per report, the Steel Rolling Mill Company is looking for bank support to finance a USD 1 billion steel plant project in Bahrain, organized by Gulf Investment Corporation.

The deal will include a USD 250 million equity tranche, a USD 250 million working capital facility and a USD 500 million long term loan. Financing is expected to be in place in a few months, with some syndication expected by the end of the year.

This move follows setting up of a USD 5 billion company called HadeedMENA by Gulf Finance House last month which aims to buy steel production facilities across the region, India and North Africa to produce eight million tonnes of steel a year.

The construction industry, which is facing high material costs and a lack of supplies, will also benefit from a deal signed this week between Bahrain and Turkey for the supply of iron, steel and cement.

Gulf Daily News reported that work on the USD 3 billion Bahrain-Qatar causeway the world’s longest man made bridge will start in January 2009 and will open for traffic by 2013.

Mr Mogens A Hviid director of design consultant Cowi project said that the conceptual designs for the Friendship Bridge will be completed in October and basic designs by the end of December. He said that “Construction is scheduled to start in January and the project will be completed in 51 months.”

Mr Hviid said that work on the project is expected to start on both sides simultaneously. He said that “The bridge section will be prefabricated onshore and each bridge will be 80 meter long and the expressway will be 35 m wide, with two traffic lanes and an emergency lane on each direction.”

’The 40 kilometer project, the longest man made bridge connection in the world, will include 22 kilometer of bridges and an 18 kilometer embankment. It said that the 25 kilometer Bahrain-Saudi causeway has 12 kilometer of bridges. The go ahead for the dream project was given following the signing of an agreement by the causeway foundation with the Qatar-Bahrain Causeway Consortium led by Paris based Vinci Construction Grand Projects.

It is report that Oman's state shipping firm aims to raise USD 4 billion by year end to finance its proposed fleet expansion program. A finance ministry official said that "The USD 4 billion we are raising this year will finance the existing vessels already on order and the purchase of more ships.”

The official said that Oman Shipping Company is looking to grow its fleet to meet demand for energy transportation by adding between 15 and 20 refined product tankers to its fleet. He added that part of OSC's multi billion dollar expansion includes an order to build 10 very large crude carriers

Mr Ahmed Al Abry COO of Bank Muscat said that "It is too big for local financial institutions to wholly finance the deal but we can collaborate with foreign banks to raise the money.”

He said that Oman's largest lender would go for the role of a lead arranger on the deal.

A major achievement has been recorded by the Harris Pye Group, the specialists in pressure vessel, boiler and combustion system repairs, upgrades and installations, with the award of certificates of authorization from the American Society of Mechanical Engineers and The National Board of Boiler & Pressure Vessel Inspectors for the use of the 'S', 'U' and 'R' stamps to each of their production facilities.

Mr Malcolm Jordan MD of Harris Pye's Middle East operations said that “This is a real feather in our cap.” He added that “ASME accreditation is extremely difficult to achieve, and now, following individual inspections of each of our manufacturing plants, we have ASME approved production facilities in Dubai, Singapore and at Barry in Wales serving the Middle East, Far East and Europe. The combined accreditation, in addition to our ISO 9001.2000, enables us to manufacture boiler parts and pressure vessels and to carry out metallic repairs and/or alterations at our workshops and at any field sites.”

He said that “Importantly, accreditation enables us to produce the whole range of components in-house and thus significantly improve delivery of traditionally long lead time products like boilers and Heat Recovery Steam Generation. Thus we are able to meet both quality and time requirements set by our clients. This is a very definite sign of our continuing, and dedicated, commitment to quality, and has already resulted in a significant number of major commitments and orders.”

Mr Jordan added that “Indeed, soon after accreditation with ASME 'S', 'U', 'R' and 'NB' stamps, Harris Pye Singapore undertook the design and fabrication of a 70 cubic feet barite surge tank for a major drilling contractor working off Indonesia.”

Khaleej Times reported that Sohar Aluminum achieved another milestone in delivering the first crucible of hot metal to SAG, a local downstream manufacture of aluminum products.

One of the key strategies for the state of the arts Sohar Aluminum smelter facility located at Sohal Industries Estate is to promote the development of the aluminum industries in Oman.

Mr Tony Kinsman CEO of Sohar said that “The most effective means to achieve this was the creation of downstream industries next to the smelter to encourage the development of enterprise specifically involved in the aluminum industry which would add value to the aluminum produced by the smelter for the local use or export.”

He added that “Sohar Aluminum will export approximately 140,000 tonne from Sohar Industrial Port. The remaining 210,000 tonnes will be sold to local companies that have been formed to create a new downstream aluminum industry.”

Interfax reported that Gazprom, faced with the need to postpone its own production of liquefied natural gas within the framework of the Sakhalin-2 project for half a year, will buy gas in the United Arab Emirates.

Gazprom's UK subsidiary Gazprom Marketing & Trading has signed a contract with Abu Dhabi Gas Liquefaction Company Ltd for the purchase of half a million tonnes of LNG from July 2008 till March 2009. The first LNG tanker, Energy Advance, set out from Abu Dhabi to Japan on July 26.

Mr Frederic Barnaud director of Gazprom Marketing & Trading said that it would enable the company to better provide for its clients in Asia this winter, considering insufficient volumes of global LNG production.

Gazprom is the principal shareholder of Sakhalin 2, Russia's first LNG project. LNG production was initially due to begin in the middle of 2008 but had to be postponed till early 2009.

Al Fara'a Properties, the flagship subsidiary of the Al Fara'a Construction Industrial and Property Group, is looking at a sharp increase in the value of the projects it plans to launch.

Ms Natasha Gangaramani director of Al Fara'a Properties told Emirates Business that "Al Fara'a Properties last year recorded slightly more than AED 1 billion in value of projects launched. This year, we will touch the AED 10 billion level.”

She said that "We have been growing 40% to 50% every year in the past three years in terms of revenue but this year will be a major jump for us especially after we secured a lot of land. It's quite a big jump. Exact revenue figures from the projects would be known later.”

Ms Gangaramani said the company will be investing in projects in Dubai Maritime City, Dubai Waterfront, Downtown Jebel Ali, and Al Reem Island by end of the year. She said the expansion is driven by the company's aim to provide on time and quality properties, a diversion from the current situation where most properties have been plagued with delays due to an overheated EPC market.

Gulf Daily reported that Gulf countries are facing an energy dilemma as intense international competition for supply is putting pressure on domestic demand. Record natural gas prices in the EU and the move by a number of countries to secure supply is forcing gulf states to reconsider energy intensive projects such as aluminum and either postpone or cancel the projects.

Gulf countries are seeking to diversify their economies away from oil dependency but appear to have incorrectly calculated gas supply and demand both domestically and internationally. GCC governments are under growing pressure to take steps to resolve the energy problem as some heavy industry companies reconsider long-term development plans in the region and look elsewhere. Both Libya and Algeria have large untapped gas reserves.

According to Reuters analysts have cast doubt on three Middle East projects. Last month Rio Tinto said its Abu Dhabi aluminum smelter project was on hold pending a review by the government of its own energy requirements. As per report aluminum smelting uses 30 times much power as the typical 500 to 600 KWh per tonne used by an electric steel plant. However Dubai Aluminum Co was quoted as saying the Emirates Aluminum project was on track having secured 30 years of power supplies. Any potential shortfall in the additional supply of aluminum may have an impact on prices as demand for aluminum continues to rise.

Qatar, the world's largest exporter of liquefied natural gas has also put on hold further development of its gas resources citing the need to devote supply for domestic need. Some moves have bee