December, 20 2005
Supreme Court dismisses KIOCL workers plea
A division bench of Supreme Court comprising Chief Justice YK Sabharwal, Justice Ruma Pal, Justice KB Balakrishnan and Justice Ajit Pasayat dismissed a petition filed by workers of Kudremukh Iron Ore Company Limited to reconsider its ruling on the closure of the company. The Apex Court has said that no ground was made for reconsideration of its order delivered on October 20, 2002.
The workers Union Kudremukh Shram Shakthi Sanghatan had filed the petition following the dismissal of the review petition by the Supreme Court on November 29.
The court order was based on the findings of Central Empowered Committee which said that the mining was illegal as the area came under a National Park.
'lucrative policy' for Jharkhand
The Jharkhand state government is planning a new rehabilitation policy to enervate the opposition by tribes afraid of eviction from their land because of large investments coming to Jharkhand's mining, steel and power sectors.
"In the past, people's land was taken and they were not compensated properly. This fear has gripped people of the state and we will remove this fear by announcing a lucrative policy," said Chief Minister Arjun Munda.
Chief Minister Arjun Munda said that the government would give double the money demanded by people who were likely to be displaced and we will establish well-planned townships for displaced people. These townships will have facilities like schools, hospitals, market places etc.
It is reported that this decision is a resultant of angered protests of tribal organizations that are opposing any form of displacement. Also this is the consequence of the need of land by different investors which amounts to 60,000 acres. This also means almost 20% or state's population will be displaced over next few years.
Jharkhand to seek special economic package
Jharkhand will seek a special package from the central government to develop the state's infrastructure to cope with the huge investments it has received in different areas. According to a rough estimate, the state will seek central assistance of Rs.526.3 billion ($12 billion) to develop roads, power and other infrastructure facilities needed for prospective investors.
Chief Minister Mr Arjun Munda raised a demand for the package at a recent meeting with central Finance Minister Mr P Chidambaram and it is reported that Mr Chidambaram asked Mr Munda to prepare a detailed report on the assistance required in various fields.
The state government has set up a committee to give final touches to the draft proposal for central aid. The committee comprising the secretaries of power, industry, mines and geology and roads will submit the report by December 23.
Jharkhand has signed project agreements worth Rs.1,500 billion in mining, steel, power and other industries.
Elkem to sell WV ferro silicon plant to Globe Metallurgical
Elkem ASA announced a US$130 million deal to sell a US silicon plant and an option to sell an associated hydroelectric plant as part of a restructuring of its silicon metals operations. Elkem said the deal would be completed early next year. The Oslo based Light metals group said it had agreed to sell the silicon plant in West Virginia to Ohio based Globe Metallurgical Inc and agreed on an option to sell the hydroelectric plant with US investment firm DE Shaw & Co.
The company said in a statement that the silicon plant has a capacity of 70,000 tons per year and the hydroelectric plant
Elkem is a major producer of aluminum, silicon metal, ferrosilicon for steel and iron foundries, carbon products and microsilica. It has plants in seven countries.
China's crude steel output up 25.5% during January to November
China's crude steel output rose 25.5% YOY to 317.65 million tons in the first 11 months of the year, and is expected to top 340 million tons for the full year, the official Xinhua news agency reported. The agency, citing statistics from the China Iron and Steel Association CISA, said China will become the first country in the world to produce more than 300 million tons of crude steel.
The CISA figures also show China produced a total of 335.25 million tons of steel products in the January-November period, up 24.6% from a year earlier, and the country's pig iron output increased 29.4 pct to 298.51 million tons.
Mittal Steel SA to cut steel prices to help small users
Mittal Steel SA has introduced steel price discounts worth 1.3 billion rand aimed at benefiting smaller customers. The announcement also pre empts Mittals year-long negotiations with government over more affordable steel prices. Mittal Steel SA also said it would offer annual contractual discounts to the construction and packaging sectors. Other benefits include the launch of an investment fund worth R250 million to facilitate the development of small and medium companies and the downstream industry. Mittal Steel SA would also provide a R60 million discount for a government low-cost housing project.
However it is reported that some of the discounts included in the R1.3 billion package have been in place for some time. These included discounts to the automotive and appliance sectors, as well as rebates for customers that exported value-added steel products.
"Currently, in the case of hot Rolled Coil, customers benefit from a 10% discount only if they place a single order of 350 tons or more. This has now been reduced to 120 tons," the company said in a statement. Industries that will benefit from the rebates include construction, automotive and packaging, the company said. Mittal Steel SA CEO Mr Davinder Chugh said that the package of benefits demonstrated the companys commitment to helping the downstream industry with its global growth and development. In a statement released at the weekend the steel producer said that mainly small and medium-sized companies would benefit from new pricing structures.
The statement implied that the package was the outcome of Mittals talks aimed at making steel more affordable in SA, but the trade and industry department said this was not the case. Chief director of the strategic competitiveness unit in the department Mr Nimrod Zalk said the move was a unilateral one by Mittal and did not reflect an agreement with the department. It was a step in the right direction, said Mr Zalk. But it does not meet our requirements it does not go far enough, he said. The two parties were still in discussions about steel prices as far as the department was concerned.
Ann Joo shareholders approve acquisition of Malayawata
Ann Joo Resources Bhds shareholders have approved the companys plan to acquire and de-list Malayawata Steel Bhd. Ann Joo ED Mr Datuk Lim Hong Thye said the acquisition was targeted to be completed by the first quarter of next year. Ann Joo is focused on the steel industry. This acquisition strengthens our position as an integrated steel producer, he told reporters
Ann Joo, an upstream steel stockiest and producer of high-grade flat steel products, has a 32.06% stake in Malayawata Steel, a downstream steel bar producer. It has proposed to acquire the remaining 67.94% in Malayawata Steel under a conditional voluntary general offer
Ann Joo, which proposes to finance the exercise through borrowings and internal funds, has secured loan facilities of up to RM220 million to fund the offer.
NCC to Build Pelletizing Plant in Sweden
Swedish construction company NCC AB has announced that it has received an order from Swedish ore processing company LKAB for building a palletizing plant in the city of Kiruna in northernmost Sweden, in a deal worth 1.1 billion kronor ($140 million). Construction will start immediately and the palletizing plant is scheduled to be in operation by March, 2008.
The assignment will comprise project design and construction of a new palletizing plant and a plant for the outward freight of pellets, NCC said. The also order includes landscaping and construction work and the plant will substantially increase the production capacity for pellets.
Lion Group's investment to cut production costs
The Lion Group's RM 5.48 billion investment in new processes and technologies for upstream iron and steel making, is a part of its effort to reduce cost of production and encourage downstream industries as per its chairman Mr Tan Sri William Cheng. Malaysian Prime Minister Mr Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi visited the site of the DRI plant, and toured Megasteel which is the country's first and only integrated flat steel mill producing hot-rolled and cold-rolled coils.
The group's new DRI plant costing RM1.0 billion would help to reduce dependence on scrap iron as raw material and enable the production of high grade steel for downstream manufacturing of high value added products, he said.The DRI project when completed in December 2006, will have a capacity of 1.54 million tonnes of DRI per annum which is a high purity feedstock for iron making, steelmaking and foundry applications.
Besides the DRI plant, the group's investment also encompasses a RM1.2 billion blast furnace, coke oven and sintering plant, a RM40-million lime kiln project, RM90 million oxygen plant, RM460 million for slab caster, RM640 million for its plate mill and RM1.6 billion for its dedicated power plant. Another RM250 million will be for its inland waterway transportation system and RM200 million for the upgrading of ladle furnace, caster and rolling mill in Megasteel.
He said the group hoped to reduce cost, increase productivity and enhance quality by investing in all these.
Rautaruukki acquires Slovakian Steel Mont
Rautaruukki Corporation has signed an agreement to purchase a 100% holding in Steel-Mont AS from its management and other private individuals. Completion of the acquisition still requires approval from competition authorities. The transaction is expected to be finalized by the end of March 2006. The parties have agreed not to publish the price of the acquisition.
The purchase of Steel-Mont will boost the implementation of Ruukki's strategy. Ruukki Construction's goal is to be one of the leading suppliers of metal-based construction solutions in the Nordic countries and Central & Eastern Europe.
"During the past two years we have supplied about 100 total deliveries comprising frame and envelopes in the central eastern European area. Until now Ruukki has obtained the frames from subcontractors. The purchase of Steel-Mont provides Ruukki with strategically important steel structure manufacturing and erection capacity in the area. The acquisition, together with the new production plant to be opened in Hungary in spring 2006, will significantly increase our capabilities in total deliveries in the eastern central European countries", states Mr Saku Sipola, President of Ruukki Construction.
Steel-Mont is the leading steel constructor in Slovakia, with net sales in 2004 of Euro 15 million and are forecast to rise to Euro 25 million in 2005. The company's customers are international and Slovak investors and construction companies building industrial and commercial premises in Slovakia.
Viet Nam Steel Corp. to invest in eight key projects
The Viet Nam Steel Corporation (VSC) will give priority to investment in eight key projects between now and 2010 to raise its production output. Mainly the production of steel ingots from domestically-exploited ores and products that have not yet been produced in the country, such as steel plates and boards.
VSC said that three projects will be implemented in 2006 and are planned for completion in 2008.
The corporation will be investing in other projects to raise its production capacity of construction steel, industry-serving steel and Cold-laminated Steel. The corporation is also carrying out a study to asses the feasibility of the project to exploit iron ore in one of the central Ha Tinh province.
This 2 year long project is expected to start in 2007.
Coke outfit to be acquired by Rain group in US
The Rain group has struck a Rs 500-crore deal to buy a calcite coke outfit in the US. According to the, an announcement to this effect is likely to be made to the stock exchanges shortly. Sources said that the group wants to retain the coking coal outfit in the US for serving the North American market.
The Group's cement business has been incurring losses amounting to 12 crore since April 2005 led to this deal. The deal is understood to leverage on the strength of the group's cement assets.
