November, 06 2005
Indian NSP silent on SEZ status
National Steel Policy, recently cleared by the Government is silent on the issue of Special Economic Zone SEZ status for mega steel plants
POSCO's proposed steel project in Orissa would have to fight for the special status in the normal course. One main attraction for these foreign companies, apart from the availability of iron ore and growing Indian demand for steel, was getting the SEZ status for their projects that entitle them to huge tax incentives.
The memorandum of understanding between the Orissa Government and POSCO categorically states "the Government of Orissa shall recommend to the Central Government and facilitate granting of SEZ status as required by the company. This includes granting of various aspects of the project, the status of SEZ Developer or SEZ Unit as the case may be, so as to receive the same incentives and benefits as an SEZ."
The Mittal Steel of LN Mittal, world's largest steel maker, too sought SEZ status from the Jharkhand Government.
The Chief Representative of POSCO in India, Mr Sang Moo Doh, however, is not worried over the development and says they are different things. "The mega steel plants and Special Economic Zones are different. The steel policy will make plans for the steel industry. But the SEZ policy is linked with the policy to push exports and earning foreign exchange," Mr Doh said. "The Indian steel market is yet to develop and if we supply our products only to the Indian market, domestic companies would suffer. So we will export. Our experience in South Korea and China will be helpful. We will sell locally only at the appropriate time," Mr Doh said.
Balmer Lawrie reports strong Q2 results
The revenues of Balmer Lawrie & Company grew by a robust 24.4% YOY to Rs 308.1 crore in Q2FY2006 led by strong performance of industrial packaging division which recorded growth of 30.2%. The net profit grew of 13.4 crores in Q2 grew by 147.5% YOY
Established in 1867 by two Scotsmen, Mr George Stephen Balmer and Alexander Lawrie, the company is a diversified multi-activity, multi-technology, multi-location conglomerate with interests in Greases & lubricants, Leather & functional chemicals, Packaging, Turnkey projects, Tea exports, Travel & tourism and Cargo & Logistics. Balmer Lawrie became a private limited company in 1924 and a public limited company in 1936. In 1972 Balmer Lawrie became a subsidiary of Indo Burma Petroleum Co. Ltd. presently known as IBP Co. Limited and a government company.
Balmer Lawrie is the largest manufacturer of Mild Steel barrels and drums in India with a market share of around 60%. Product range consists of plain steel barrels, bitumen drums, lacquered and composite barrels besides LPG cylinders. Barrels are manufactured in a range of configurations to suit different type of products. The company's manufacturing facilities are located at Chennai, Kolkata, Mathura, Mumbai, Panipat, Turbhe and Silvassa.
PSL bags pipe coating contract from HPCL
Large dia pipe manufacturer PSL Ltd announced that it has bagged a pipe coating contract for the `Mundhra-Delhi Pipeline Project' worth Rs 71 crore from Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Ltd.
This order will consist of three layers of PE coating on bare line pipes and associated work of all the four parts Part A-1, Part A-2, Part B-1 and Part B-2 for the Mundra-Delhi project.
This is the second time that PSL is associated with HPCL in the current year. The earlier project was for manufacturing pipes for the Mundra-Delhi Pipeline Project worth Rs 250 crore.
NALCO to develop coal block in Orissa for captive use
The Union Ministry of Coal has allocated a virgin block at Talcher coalfield in Orissa to National Aluminium Company Ltd NALCO for developing it to meet its own requirement. A Nalco source said the company's captive power plant was finding it difficult to meet the full requirement of coal from domestic sources. It has thus taken steps to import coal to ensure generation of requisite power even for the existing operations.
The company's requirement will go up substantially with the completion of the ongoing capacity expansion plan of its captive power plant from 960 MW to 1,200 MW by 2007. The power plant's capacity is being expanded in tandem with the company's ongoing capacity expansion programme of its bauxite mines from 4.8 million tonnes to 6.3 million tonnes., alumina refinery from 1.6 million tonnes to 2.1 million tonnes and aluminium smelter from 0.34 million tonnes to 0.46 million tonnes
S&P raises ratings of TATA Steel
Standard & Poor's S&P today raised the foreign currency ratings of Tata Steel to 'BBB' with stable outlook from 'BB'. The revision is a result of review of transfer and convertibility risk in these markets.
The rating of Infosys has also been upgraded. The revised rating of the two companies is a part of the agency's revision of ten non-sovereign credit ratings in Asian countries including India, Indonesia, Philippines and Thailand.
According to the release, the up gradation of the ratings were undertaken as countries under political and economic stress are ''considered less likely to restrict non-sovereign entities'' increased access to the foreign exchange needed to service debt. ''This means that certain non-sovereign entities that are considered well insulated from direct and indirect sovereign risks may achieve a foreign currency rating that exceeds the sovereign foreign currency rating,'' the release said.
RBCT expansion finally announced
South Africa's private coal export terminal, the Richards Bay Coal Terminal RBCT, has announced a scaled up version of its much anticipated and delayed expansion, revealing that it would now enlarge capacity from the existing 72 million tonnes base to 92 million tonnes by July 2008. When originally announced in mid 2001, it was anticipated that the facility would be expanded by 10 million tonnes to 82 million tonnes. More recently, however, it was speculated that this could be enlarged by 15 million tonnes
RBCT chairperson Mr Tony Redman, who also heads AngloCoal, RBCT's second largest shareholder after Ingwe, said the 20 million tonnes expansion project would cost about R1-billion and that it would include the original Phase 5 expansion, also known as the South Dunes Coal Terminal (SDCT)
Can you make steel? Enter the steeluniversity.org challenge
IISI has announced the worlds first virtual-steelmaking challenge. Competitors will use the secondary steelmaking module of IISIs award winning steeluniversity.org website to make a specific grade of steel. The winner will receive a cash prize of 250. The prize may be presented at a major IISI meeting at a venue and date to be decided in consultation with the winner. IISI will also cover expenses for the winner to attend the presentation.
The competition is open to anyone who has access to steeluniversity.org. You must register on the site before you can enter the competition. Registrations open on 23 November. Multiple entries will be accepted. Group entries are also possible. Only one member of the group should register.
At 12 noon GMT on 30 November, a specific grade of steel will be announced on steeluniversity.org. Competitors will then have 24 hours to make this grade of steel. The winner will be selected based on the criteria that the steel must meet the specified composition, the ladle of liquid steel must be delivered to the correct casting machine at the requested time and temperature and with the required inclusion content and the cost must be as low as possible.
Baltic States warn on Russia-Germany pipeline
The Presidents of Latvia, Lithuania and Estonia called on Thursday for broader European Union involvement in the Baltic gas pipeline which they said posed a potentially catastrophic environmental threat to their region. The three Baltic leaders, meeting in Estonia, told a news conference that the Russia-to-Germany pipeline would be built upon a seabed which had been littered with tons of dumped chemical weapons and any mistakes made during construction could release the chemicals with drastic consequences, they said.
The construction of the gas supply pipeline is of vital importance to the countries of the region, however we must draw the attention of the EU and the Scandinavian countries to the potential threats such construction is posing, Lithuanian President Valdas Adamkus said
Estonian President Mr Arnold Ruutel said an extensive area in the south of the Baltic Sea was polluted with chemical weapons. An extensive area in the south of the Baltic Sea is polluted with chemical weapons, he said. Some of them were simply sunk together with the ships after the end of World War II. In this respect, most of the danger lies in the strip of some 1,200 km (750 miles) near the Swedish and the Lithuanian coast where the pipeline is to be constructed.
The pipeline, which will ship Siberian gas from Russia to Germany, bypassing Poland and the Baltic states, will be run by a joint venture of Russian state gas monopoly Gazprom, Germany utility E.ON and Wintershall, a unit of German chemical maker BASF.
Sheffield Steel special committee considers offers
Sheffield Steel Corporation today announced that the special committee of its Board of Directors has completed its consideration of the two unsolicited indications of interest in acquiring Sheffield Steel that were discussed in Sheffield's October 12, 2005 release and has determined not to pursue either proposal as presented.
Sheffield Steel also stated that the special committee, in consultation with Lane, Berry & Co. International, LLC, its financial and strategic advisor, was continuing to explore strategic alternatives to enhance shareholder value, including the possible sale or merger of Sheffield. Sheffield cautioned, however, that no decision has been made to pursue any strategic alternative and that there can be no assurance that the exploration of strategic alternatives would result in any definitive agreement or transaction.
Sheffield Steel is a mini-mill producer of SBQ and MBQ hot-rolled bar products, concrete reinforcing bar and fabricated products, including fabricated rebar, steel fence posts and railroad track spikes. The company's headquarters and largest manufacturing facility is located in Sand Springs, Oklahoma, where it has an annual billet making capacity of 650,000 tons. It also has a rolling mill in Joliet, Illinois, two fabrication shops in the Kansas City area, and a railroad spike producer in Sand Springs, Oklahoma. Sheffield also owns the Sand Springs Railway, which connects the Sand Springs industrial corridor to Tulsa, Oklahoma.
Stelco bondholders lose court appeal
Stelco Inc bondholders have been defeated in their effort to get the company's refinancing plan thrown out, but vowed again yesterday to reject it, setting the stage for intense negotiations before the plan goes to a vote later this month.
The Ontario Court of Appeal tossed out the bondholders' appeal of an October decision by Mr. Justice James Farley, who allowed the $550-million refinancing to go to a vote of creditors. Judge Farley of the Ontario Superior Court also approved deals Stelco made with the government of Ontario, the United Steelworkers union and Tricap Management Ltd. that underpin the plan. "The creditors will have the ultimate say on Nov. 15 whether this plan will be approved," Mr. Justice Marc Rosenberg said yesterday on behalf of a three-judge panel.
A group of Stelco shareholders wants to permit an expert witness to testify about steel prices and to cross-examine Mr Michael Woollcombe, one of two directors who resigned from Stelco's board in August after the steel maker cut its forecast for steel prices for the third and fourth quarters of 2005.
The shareholders' argument is that the Stelco plan that declares their shares worthless may be based on incorrect forecasts for the price of steel. Lawyers for convertible debenture holders also appeared before Judge Farley.
The Stelco plan provides for a $100-million (Canadian) loan from the Ontario government that will contribute to a $400-million immediate payment to reduce a $1.3-billion pension solvency deficiency that the steel maker cited as a reason for seeking creditor protection in January, 2004. Tricap will provide $450-million in new financing and two USW locals at Stelco have agreed to new labor deals that guarantee three years of labor peace.
KOC signs 1400 km 6 dia pipeline contract
Kuwait Oil Company KOC has signed three contracts during last month, totaling more than $200 million, to supply and replace the flow line network in the states northern and western oil fields.
The local Combined Group won the largest of the three contracts, worth $89 million, covering the northern fields. Heavy Industry Engineering & Shipbuilding Company (Hiesco) was awarded the $55 million contract covering the western fields, while the local Mechanical Engineering & Controls Company (MECC) won the $82 million contract covering the southeastern fields. All three companies were low bidders for the contracts when bids were opened earlier in the year.
Each of the four-year packages calls for the supply and installation of up to 1,400 kilometers of six inch carbon steel pipe running from oil field wellheads to their requisite manifolds and gathering centers. Once completed, the schemes will increase crude handling capacity from the three areas by 10,000-20,000 barrels a day.
South Korean rebar demand to top 10 million tons in 2006
South Koreas rebar demand is expected to rise by 4.2% next year and is expected to total up to 10.5 million tons.
Total production is expected to rise by 3.8% to 1,137,000 tons next year. The expected export volume of South Korean rebars will drop 66% percent to 177,000 tons. South Korea is expected to import a total of 539, 000 tons of rebar, 35.6% less than this year.
Labrador Iron Ore Royalty announces Q3 results
Labrador Iron Ore Royalty Income Fund announced its results for the third quarter ended September 30, 2005. Royalty income for the third quarter of 2005 amounted to $16.88 million as compared to $6.67 million for the third quarter of 2004, an increase of 153% over the same period last year.
The price increases for pellets (86%) and concentrates (72%) negotiated for 2005 resulted in our share of IOC's earnings increasing to $9.4 million compared to a loss of $2.1 million in the 2004 third quarter, which was negatively affected by a strike that closed IOC's production facilities from July 19 to September 29, 2004.
