Union Minister for Steel and Civil Aviation Shri Jyotiraditya Scindia said that at present India is the fourth largest producer of zinc in the world and 80% of the zinc produced in India is consumed domestically. Addressing the Fourth Global Zinc Summit -2023 here today, Shri Scindia said Indian Railways and Steel Authority of India Limited (SAIL) are working together to produce corrosion-free steel.
Due to its anti-corrosion properties and anti-oxidation quality in steel products, zinc has huge marketing potential for sectors like renewable energy, rural electrification, galvanization of smart city structures, etc. Galvanized steel will provide long life to the infrastructure made in our long coastline, the minister added.
Touching upon the major steps taken by the Indian steel sector, Minister Shri Scindia said that there will be a massive expansion of production to double production from the current capacity of 150 million tonnes per annum to 300 million tonnes per annum by 2030. India has already emerged as the second largest producer of steel in the world and our per capita consumption of steel has increased from 57 kg to 78 kg in the last nine years, Shri Scindia said.
The Minister said that we have honored 54 applications submitted by nearly 26 companies under Production Linked Incentive (PLI) for Special Steel. In July 2021, the Union Cabinet approved a PLI scheme of Rs 6,322 crore to promote special steel production in India.
PLI will help expand production capacity of 26 million tonnes per annum and investment of 30,000 crore rupees, creating employment for 55,000 people. The minister added that the government has announced a huge investment outlay of Rs 10 crore for infrastructure development, which has opened up huge investment opportunities across sectors.
Highlighting the Prime Minister’s commitment to net zero carbon emissions by 2030, the Steel Minister said: “We have to learn to co-exist with the environment, we have to learn to respect the environment, there can no longer be a linear model of take, make and dispose. Recycling must become a part of our existence”. Member of Parliament Shri Raju Bista, Shri Arun Misra CEO, HZL, Dr. Andrew Green, ED, IZA and delegates from Europe, America and Asia.
