Long products prices continue declining in India

Delhi

Change is on October 8th as compared to October 7th 2008
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Mumbai

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Ahmedabad

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Kanpur

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Indore

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Raipur

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If you want to know the prevailing prices and changes across the week on daily basis, please subscribe to services of www.steelprices-india.com

We have not provided index owing holidays in Kolkata, Chennai, Bangalore and other steel trading centers on account of Durgapuja Dusshera.

Indian Railways to raise freight on iron ore movement

It is reported that Indian steel industry, already under pressure, is set to receive a major blow as India’s Railways is planning about 6% increase in charges for freighting iron ore. The new measure by Railways could hit the profitability of industry, which is reeling under pressure due to global slow down.

Indian Railways' freight hike may come by way of revision in class for trainload movement of iron ore meant for domestic consumption to manufacture iron and steel. As against the previous class of 170, Railways plans to revise it to 180 from October 13.

Its implication would be that basic freight along with 7% busy season surcharge and development charge (2% of basic freight and busy season surcharge) would inflate.

Under class 170, the Railways used to charge a basic freight of INR 583 per tonne for movement of iron ore along K K Line from Chattisgharh to Vizag. Post-reclassification to 180, however, the basic freight for the same would go up to INR 617.

A senior official of a steel company said that "The move would be a double whammy for domestic iron and steel producers, whose bottom lines have already been hit due to falling prices and slump in demand following global economic slowdown.”

ArcelorMittal moving ahead with steel plant in Chattisgharh

It is reported that ArcelorMittal is in talks with the state government of Chattisgharh to set up a 6 million tonne per year integrated steel mill.

As per report ArcelorMittal is intends to invest about USD 3 billion in the project. Discussions are still in the initial stages, but when the project is complete, the company's proposed steel production capacity from its units in India will reach 30 million tons per year within the next decade.

ArcelorMittal has already officially announced plans to invest USD 24 billion in two integrated steel plants in the states of Orissa and Jharkhand.

Flat products price remains stable in India

Mumbai

Change is on October 8th as compared to October 7th 2008
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Ahmedabad

Change is on October 8th as compared to October 7th 2008
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Delhi

Change is on October 8th as compared to October 7th 2008
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Ludhiana

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Kanpur

Change is on October 8th as compared to October 7th 2008
Change is in INR per tonne

If you want to know the prevailing prices and changes across the week on daily basis, please subscribe to services of www.steelprices-india.com

We have not provided index owing holidays in Kolkata, Chennai, Bangalore and other steel trading centers on account of Durgapuja Dusshera.

Auto part suppliers support TATA Motors move to Gujarat

BL reported that auto component suppliers were quick in responding to TATA Motors announcement on Tuesday to relocate to Sanand, stating that they would extend their support for the timely launch of the model.

The response of suppliers comes at a time when the domestic automobile industry is fighting margin pressures amid a sluggish demand and has been looking at ways to mitigate the low order books. These suppliers are now hoping that mass market appeal of Nano would bring in the volumes to rev up demand.

Mr Arvind Kapur MD of Rico Auto said that “Gujarat is a very investor friendly State. While we have invested about INR 10 crore to INR 12 crore in Singur and we are assessing the impact of how we can absorb the losses at the moment it is about supporting TATA Motors.” He said that when asked if there were any incentives offered to the vendors, he was not aware but they had requested the company to provide some incentives.

Similarly Amtek Auto too which has invested in Singur said that was ready to move to Gujarat. Mr Santosh Singhi CFO of Amtek Auto said that “We will move now to Gujarat. The investment could be in the range of INR 50 crore to INR 60 crore.”

Mr NK Minda chairman of Minda Group said that “I think the project is going to do well. To us, our freight cost may turn out to be lesser. Earlier also, we were not investing in Singur but were supplying from Pune and Manesar. So we would continue to do so and later on depending on the volumes we would decide on our investment.”

Mr Biswajit Choudhury group GM of Endurance Systems said that “We will not be able to tell you as we are yet to take a decision. However we can supply from our existing locations.”

The proximity of Gujarat to Maharashtra which is also an auto hub gives respite to some component suppliers such as Minda and Endurance who have production facilities in Maharashtra from where they could supply.

Sponge Iron and pencil ingot prices decline slightly in India

The prices for input material showed overall:

Melting scrap
80:20
HMS

Change is on October 8th as compared to October 7th 2008
Change is in INR per tonne

Sponge iron

Change is on October 8th as compared to October 7th 2008
Change is in INR per tonne

Pencil ingot

Change is on October 8th as compared to October 7th 2008
Change is in INR per tonne

If you want to know the prevailing prices and changes across the week on daily basis, please subscribe to services of www.steelprices-india.com

We have not provided index owing holidays in Kolkata, Chennai, Bangalore and other steel trading centers on account of Durgapuja Dusshera.

Essar to cancel JV with REpower Systems - Report

Projects Today reported that Essar Group is likely to drop a proposed JV with REpower Systems to manufacture wind turbines in Gujarat.

The report cited a source as saying that “At present, the joint venture seems to be impractical as Suzlon is pursuing various such projects on its own in the country. Essar may independently re look into it in the future if the business in wind turbine making proves to be promising. The group has no plans to find another partner and pursue the project as of now.”

Confirming the development, a source in Suzlon said that “We believe that Essar has not followed the contractual obligations, resultantly the agreement with REpower signed in 2006 has no legal validity. Thus, we think that REpower’s project with Essar is off.”

However, the Essar spokesperson said that “We are exploring opportunity in the manufacturing of complete wind turbines for which we have a valid license from REpower.”

India hopes to attract over USD 4 billion in green energy

Reuters cited Mr Vilas Muttemwar minister of renewable energy as saying that India is hoping to attract investments of more than USD 4 billion in renewable energy over the next 5 to 7 years as it prepares to unveil a new bio fuels policy within a month.

Mr Muttemwar said that domestic and foreign companies such as India's TATA group and Reliance Industries as well as state run utilities are among hundreds of companies vying for a stake in India's emerging green energy sector.

Mr Muttemwar said that another 150 companies are also keen to set up biofuel processing plants. He said that “A lot of scope is there in the coming days for renewable energy. According to our information, nearly INR 200 billion is the investment we are expecting in 5 to 7 years.”

Mr Muttemwar said that nearly 56% of India's billion plus population did not have access to electricity and therefore coal fired power generation was needed for supplies. He added that but India was hoping to spread the use of green energy with a new biofuels policy which would be implemented within a month or so.

As per report, the investments span solar, hydro, wind and biofuel energy. India aims to generate 25,000 MW of power from renewable energy over the next 4 years more than double the current generation level of 12,000 MW. Only 3% of India's total power mix is now from renewables and developing this sector is at the centre of India's national plan on climate change which does not commit to any emission targets.

India aims to lift the level of biofuel that has to be mixed in petrol and diesel to 20% by 2017 from the present level of 5% worrying some analysts who fear it might be at the expense of food output. But others said that it offers a way to trim the country's hefty fossil fuel import bill. India imports 70% of the oil it consumes.

In spite of its pledge to clean technology, pollution spewing coal remains the backbone of India's power sector accounting for about 60% of generation with the government planning to add about 70,000 MW in the next 5 years.

West Bengal puts conditions on Metro retail venture

Indian express reported that after TATA Motors exit, West Bengal is set to experience yet another jolt in the future prospects of industrialization in the state.

One of the five conditions imposed by the Forward Bloc on Metro Cash & Carry has become the Achilles’ heel for the German major to start their business in Kolkata. That Metro can not sell any product worth less than INR 5,000, which may not be suitable for the company to go ahead with its plans for doing business here.

Mr Naren Chatterjee chairman of Agricultural Marketing Produce Committee at the Writers’ Buildings said that “We could not reach a consensus on the first condition (Metro can not sell any product that is worth less than INR 5,000) but so far as the remaining four conditions are concerned, they have accepted them. In any case, we will sit again for talks.”

However, the company did not confirm whether they have accepted the conditions. Mr Vishal Sehgal head of Metro’s corporate communications said that “Our discussions are going on. We can get back to you only when a decision is taken.”

On the other hand, principal secretary to the chief minister Subesh Das sounded optimistic when he told reporters that the state Government will sign a MoUwith Metro Cash & Carry on October 10.

NTPC pays highest ever total yearly dividend for 2007-08

NTPC Limited paid a total dividend of INR 2885.92 crore for the financial year 2007-08 which amounts to 35% of its paid up capital. This is the highest ever dividend declared by the company.

As per report shareholders of NTPC approved a final dividend of 8% amounting INR 659.63 crore at the 32nd Annual General Meeting of the company held on September 17th 2008.

A cheque amounting INR 590.37 crore was presented by Mr RS Sharma CMD of NTPC to Mr Sushi Kumar Shinde Union Minister of Power being share of Government of India towards final dividend for the FY 2007-08 in New Delhi. Mr Anil Razdan Secretary Power, Government of India and senior officials of Ministry of Power & NTPC were also present on the occasion.

As per release, the company had earlier paid an Interim dividend of INR 1992.50 crore in February 2008. Thus NTPC has made a total dividend payment of INR 2582.87 crore to Government of India for the FY 2007-08 as against INR 2361.48 crore in the last FY 2006-07. This is the 15th consecutive year that NTPC has paid dividend.

APGenco nuclear power plant in AP gets state approval

Project Today reported that Andhra Pradesh government has given its nod for Andhra Pradesh Power Generation Corporation's 2 x 1,000 MW nuclear power plant projects which is being planned either at Kadapa or Srikakulam. This will be the first nuclear power plant in Andhra Pradesh.

Besides, the state has a nuclear fuel complex in Hyderabad, heavy water plant at Manuguru in Khammam district and a large coastline, so to get land and water for the project will not be a problem.

APGenco will also establish an ultra mega thermal power project of 4,000 MW capacity near Vodarevu in Prakasam district. Meanwhile, the power generation company is also bidding for two new blocks of coal from Mahanadi for its future needs.

As of now the total installed capacity of the company is 7,048.9 MW including 3,382.5 MW of thermal, 3,664.4 MW of hydro and 2 MW of wind mills power.

IL&FS Halcrow consortium to advice Freight Corridor Corp

Project Today reported that a consortium comprising IL&FS, Halcrow Consulting, Australian legal firm Blake Dawson and Railways' subsidiary RITES will advise Dedicated Freight Corridor Corporation of India on the level of track access charges that it will receive from the Indian Railways. These charges are expected to be the key source of revenue for DFCCIL.

As per report, DFCCIL will sign the agreement with the consortium. The consortium will also advise DFCCIL on the concession agreement that it will sign with the Indian Railways.

DFCCIL is a special purpose vehicle formed to plan, develop, mobilize funds and construct, maintain and operate the dedicated rail freight corridors. To begin with the freight corridor will have 2,762 route kilometer of rail links Eastern corridor Ludhiana to Sone Nagar and Western Corridor Jawahar Lal Nehru Port, Mumbai to Tughlakabad Dadri. The 2 corridors will interlink at Khurja.

The report added that the Western corridor will be built with an estimated expenditure of INR 23,680 crore. The Railways expects to put in INR 6,200 crore from internal accruals, INR 1,250 crore from gross budgetary support and up by INR 16,230 crore as debt. The Railway Ministry is trying for Japan Bank for International Cooperation funding for this project.

The report further added that the Eastern corridor will be built at an estimated cost of INR 19,613 crore. Of this INR 7,800 crore will be through internal generation, INR 1,250 crore through gross budgetary support and INR 10,563 crore will be raised as debt from multilateral agencies such as the World Bank and the ADB.

Contractors to be finalized soon for Machilipatnam Port

It is reported that tenders invited for drainage and breakwater works at the proposed Machilipatnam Port project in Krishna district of Andhra Pradesh are expected to be finalized sometime next month.

The project is being executed by the consortium of Maytas Infrastructure Limited, Nagarjuna Construction Company Limited, SREI Infrastructure Finance Limited and a private company owned by the chairman of Satyam.

The project has been conceived over 3,000 acres of land at an estimated cost of INR 1,600 crore. It will be implemented on BOT basis.

Consulting Engineering Services, Delhi has been appointed as project consultant. Financial closure and environmental clearance are likely to be in place by December 2008. The project is scheduled for completion within 24 months and is expected to begin operations by January 2009.

Volkswagen roll out from Pune plant ahead of time

Asia Pulse cited Mr Christian Wulff head of German state of Lower Saxony as saying that German automobile major Volkswagen will roll out passenger cars from its Greenfield plant in Pune 6 months ahead of schedule.

Mr Wulff said that "We had a great experience as far as India is concerned. The new plant in Pune is coming up six months earlier than its plan." Earlier in the day Mr Wulff met Commerce and Mr Kamal Nath Industry Minister.

Mr Nath said that the Singur was an isolated incident and has not dented the enthusiasm of Volkswagen. He said that “We met a delegation. They have no problem,” he added that India is seeking more ancillaries for the Volkswagen.

The industry chambers had warned that a wrong signal is going out to foreign investors after the TATA announced pull out from Singur in West Bengal following prolonger violent protests. Volkswagen is investing USD 300 million over a 500 acre site at Chakan near Pune. The plant to be operational in 2009 will produce small cars.

Mr Wulff said that “By 2010 we have plans to produce about 1 million cars and will ramp up this figure to 3 million.”

Mr Nath said that “The trade target of EUR 20 billion by 2012 appears well within our sight.” The minister further said that Lower Saxony could be an important trading partner of India in sectors like agriculture, mining, crude oil, manufacturing, aviation, shipbuilding, biotechnology, steel and tourism industry.

Essar Oil and IOC sign MoU

Project Today reported that Essar Oil has signed a product sale, purchase and infrastructure sharing MoU with Indian Oil Corporation.

IOC which is currently in net deficit in product in certain regions will now be able to feed its domestic markets in the western and eastern regions by having access to Essar Oil's product and infrastructure on the west coast. An estimated quantity of 2 million tonnes per annum of motor spirit, high speed diesel and SKO is projected to be lifted by IOC by various modes in 2008-09.

Essar Oil operates a 10.5 million tonnes per annum refinery in Gujarat with over 1,500 retail stations. It has also chalked out plans to increase its refinery capacity to 34 million tonnes per annum.

ONGC Mittal Energy to set up USD 4 billion refinery in Nigeria

My Iris reported that ONGC-Mittal Energy a JV between India’s biggest oil company ONGC and LN Mittal group is planning to set up its first refinery in Nigeria with an outlay of around USD 4 billion.

The financial daily said that the JV has appointed UK based consultant Nexant to undertake a feasibility study for the proposed 9 million tonnes refinery.

It added that OMEL and Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation have constituted a steering committee to work out details of the project. The project is as per an MoU signed between OMEL and the Nigerian government in November 2005 that the company would make some infrastructure investments in the country in lieu of exploration blocks.

ONGC offers Sakhalin-1 Sokol crude cargo for December

My Iris reported that Oil and Natural Gas Corporation has offered to sell a first cargo of light sweet Sakhalin-1 Sokol crude for December loading.

As per report, the tender for a 700,000 barrel cargo to be loaded on December 7th closes on October 14th with bids to remain valid until October 15th. The spot premium for Sokol crude strengthened slightly in ONGC’s previous tender late last month in line with a higher gas oil crack.

ONGC which has an equity stake in the Russian oil project sold a November loading cargo to US major Exxon Mobil at a premium of around USD 5.50 a barrel to Oman/Dubai quotes up from USD 5.20 to USD 5.40 for an earlier November loading cargo.

Nippon Steel predicts global steel demand to slow down

Mr Akio Mimura chairman of Nippon Steel Corporation said that the growth in global steel demand will slow to less than 5% in 2009 due to the global financial crisis even thought it grew 7.5% in 2007.

World Steel Association also holds the same opinion as Mr Mimura's to expect the steel demand will grow in 2009, but the outlook is still uncertain because of the credit crisis.

However, WSA will not update its forecast until April 2009 due to sharply changing circumstances.

WSA delays publication of 3 year world steel outlook

It is reported that World Steel Association has delayed publication of its annual three year outlook on global steel production due to changes in the global economy that will require the association to update its economic forecasts.

WSA decided to pull their shorter term forecast because the group based those projections on an economic model in August. The changing economic picture of late has rendered that possibly out of date.

Mr Nicholas Walters spokesman of WSA said that "Now, with this market, with the turmoil we're seeing, we felt it was inappropriate to release the older figures. On a global basis this is a situation which is really unclear. Once this financial crisis is behind us, there is much more certainty. This unprecedented situation has caused fuzziness. The world has to grow."

Mr John Surma chairman & CEO of US Steel said that the effects of the crisis may be felt among US steel companies more quickly than others around the globe because the financial difficulties seem to have emerged from North America. He added that "This current financial unrest will undoubtedly create some complications in merger and acquisition activity in the steel industry, but the sector is still less consolidated than others and the financial crisis will not stop that."

Mr Guillermo Vogel VP of finance at Tenaris SA said that WSA met in September 2008 to review their numbers amid the ongoing financial crisis and the group decided the financial market uncertainty made it impossible to create steel demand estimates for 2009.

The next World Steel Association Short Range Outlook will be issued in April 2009. The association is still working on a longer term forecast, which will forecast steel output until 2050.

ThyssenKrupp sees better earnings for FY 2007-08

Dr Karl Ulrich Köhler executive board member of ThyssenKrupp AG and also executive board chairman of ThyssenKrupp Steel AG have confirmed the earnings forecast for ThyssenKrupp AG, which had been raised in August 2008. He said that "We are expecting sales in the region of EUR 53 billion and earnings before taxes and nonrecurring items of more than EUR 3.2 billion in fiscal year 2007-08."

The steel segment, which is focused on premium carbon steel flat products, performed very successfully in a robust market environment, but will not match the record earnings of 2006-07. The reasons for this lie in pre operating costs for the major projects in Brazil and the USA and restructuring expenses at the metal forming operations.

Dr Köhler said that "Demand for our products was exceptionally high. Although our production units were fully utilized we were unable to meet customer requirements in full for capacity reasons."

At more than 14.2 million tonnes, crude steel production at ThyssenKrupp Steel was slightly lower than the year before due to the relining of Schwelgern 1 blast furnace in the first quarter of 2008. However, the output of the ThyssenKrupp Steel melt shops increased slightly thanks to a number of optimization measures, including more intensive scrap use. Slabs again had to be bought in to ensure maximum utilization of hot rolled capacities.

Despite the weaker global economy, the situation on the international steel markets 2008 was marked by continuing growth and full capacity utilization. The first half of the calendar year in particular was characterized by brisk global demand which came up against supply shortages in some cases. This trend was accompanied by steel price increases, albeit with significant regional differences. The highest price rises were in Asia, the lowest in Europe.

ThyssenKrupp Steel is confident about its prospects in the current fiscal year 2008-09. This optimism is based on the fact that the forecasts for the global steel market remain favorable. Demand in particular from Asia, Latin America, the Middle East and the CIS will continue to grow at an above average rate in the next few years and significantly impact the global market.

In depth analysis of steel projects in India

What is important to take note of now, however, is that the Indian steel industry suddenly finds itself in a completely different context. In the world of steel, every player remains familiar with the cyclical nature of the growth. Therefore, the slowdown should not have surprised any in the industry. But, none really expected this to have happened so fast. The steel super cycle seems to have been ended abruptly or really?”

“India’s steel dream looks to be fading away” This is how we started our last year’s steel report. With the added uncertainty, the industry’s plans are in total disarray. There are no questions on the opportunities this country has offered in steel. From all points of view, these have been strong and credible ones.”

But the recent great years in steel have supported strong capacity growth in the steel industry in India. The more competitive brownfield expansion projects have started delivering results and more are expected to come. What has been extraordinarily interesting to note in the past few years is the growth of very small to mid size capacities.

The Indian steel industry is in a peculiar fix. The capacity could not be raised immediately because of their own strategic problems. The limited capacity in the country and higher global prices provided to them all the opportunities to make sufficient money themselves and raise their credibility in the global capital market. However, an impulsive government, given the high political value attached to inflation in India, intervened in the steel business more than it needed to do.

Despite the fact that the capacity expansions in India have been of recent origin, a huge chunk of the existing capacity is technologically outdated or is uniquely backward.

It will be premature to write India’s steel ambition off despite all the bad news surrounding it currently.”

“Indian Steel Projects: Ground Reality, Strategic Issues and Opportunities” from Steel and Natural Resources Strategy Research analyses the context each significant producer is placed in and identifies their core problems. It makes an objective assessment of the strength and weakness of each of the major projects, when they are expected to be completed and at what cost.

It takes a macro view of the emerging steel supply scenario till 2021.

This 115 page report with 35 tables, 12 charts, a number of annexure, three maps and an appendix looks at the steel industry’s future in India from a strategic point of view to guide the investors in the industry, capital goods industry, steel traders, raw materials suppliers and the policy makers in the government in their own individual planning for the future.

Report Summary:
1. Published: Sep 2008
2. Format PDF File (Delivery by Email on receipt of payment)
3. Total no of pages – 115

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US HRC prices falls to USD 800 per short tonne

It is reported that North American mill FOB HRC prices have dropped to under USD 800 per short tonne for orders of 5,000 to 10,000 short tonne or more.

Even for many small to mid-sized customers, they are roughly USD 860 to USD 890 per short tonne and buyers ordering 1,000 to 2,000 short tonne could probably cut deals at USD 840 per short tonne or less.

The mill FOB HRC price in the US was over USD 1,000 per short tonne a little more than a month ago.

Siderurgica Italiana to develop a news steel plant in Rio Bravo

Mexican officials confirmed that an Italian company Siderurgica Italiana is going to construct a steel plant in the Tamaulipas border city of Rio Bravo.

Mr Ettore Salvadori representative of Rio Bravo said that the first stage of construction could begin as early as January 2009.

Mr Juan José de la Fuente Saldivar economic director of Rio Bravo said that the plant would sit on 494 acres of land and create at least 1,000 jobs in the border city of 84,000. He added that a new international bridge between Rio Bravo and Donna could be completed as early as 2010.

Manitex acquires assets of Crane & Machinery Schaeff

Manitex International Inc, a leading provider of engineered lifting solutions including boom truck cranes, rough terrain forklifts and special mission oriented vehicles, announced that it has acquired the assets of Crane & Machinery Inc and Schaeff Inc for USD 3.7 million, consisting of USD 1 million in stock and assumption of USD 2.7 million in debt.

Mr Andrew Rooke president & COO of Manitex International said that "The acquisition of Crane, which has approximately 25% of its revenue derived from international markets, supports our diversification strategy and adds scale to our existing replacement parts business. We expect Crane's distribution network to accelerate our penetration into international markets, which is a key part of our growth strategy. Its substantial after market service and parts business, accounting for 30% of its annual revenues, is recurring and derived from its well established reputation for customer service. The Schaeff electric forklift is a niche product that will complement our material handling offering. We expect the acquisition to be accretive to our net income beginning in the current quarter."

Mr Paul Zaremba GM of Crane & Machinery said that "Manitex's leadership position, financial strength and proven commitment to outstanding products and service will enable us to expand our offering to our customers. We are excited with the opportunity this provides for the expansion of the Crane business, becoming part of the Manitex International group and contributing to the establishment of an integrated world class capital equipment company."

Crane and Schaeff, formerly private companies owned by GT Distribution, had combined 2007 revenues of USD 21 million. Crane & Machinery is an authorized dealer for Terex rough terrain and truck cranes, Fuchs material handlers as well as Manitex boom trucks and sign cranes and is also a supplier of second hand equipment, replacement crane and equipment parts and repair and maintenance services. Schaeff designs, manufactures and sells a line of indoor electric sit down and standup forklifts.

WSA publishes third sustainability report 2008

A new report released by World Steel Association outlines the challenges faced by the industry, reaffirms its commitment to sustainable development and presents the industry’s progress.

The 2008 Sustainability Report is based on a survey of 500 stakeholders located in Europe, North America, South America, Australia, Asia and Africa. The report captures indicator data from 38 companies and two regional associations in 2006, representing 520 million tonnes of steel or 42% of world production and USD 410.3 billion in annual revenues.

Mr Ian Christmas director general of WSA said that "We are faced with a broad range of sustainable development challenges and it is our responsibility to help meet the growing demand for steel in a sustainable way. This report underlines the actions that we, individually and together as an industry, are taking to address these challenges."

The industry's 3 key sustainable development priorities are

1. Safety and Health
The safety and health of the people who work in our industry is our top priority. All injuries and work-related illness can and must be prevented

2. Climate Change
CO2 emissions from the steel industry will inevitably increase with projected increased volume of steel production in the future. To address the challenge of CO2 emission reduction we are developing an intensity-based global steel sector approach

3. Adding Value
The recyclability of steel is one of its most valuable properties. We are shifting our focus from increasing the volume of steel in use to maximizing the contribution of steel over product life cycles

Mr Christmas concluded that "Sustainable development is aimed at improving the quality of life for everyone, now and for generations to come. For the world steel industry it means valuing the interdependence of environmental, social and economic aspects in all decision making."

Feng Hsin plans production cut

Because of the weakening steel long product demand in Taiwan’s domestic market, the management of Taiwan Feng Hsin Iron & Steel is planning to reduce its long steel production in fourth quarter, triggered by a monthly decrease in shipping quantity.

Although Feng Hsin has not yet decided the exact amount of its production reduced level percentage, some people believed that the production reduced level might be about 10% to 20%.

On the other hand, because of the weak demand and the fact that the electricity price will raise again this October, some financial analysts believe that not only Feng Hsin, but also Tong Ho and Wei Chih will slash long steel production in the following few months.

(Sourced from YIEH.com)

Directory of Shipyards and Marine Service Providers in India

The Indian maritime sector has entered a high-growth phase fuelled by the country's spectacular economic growth and rapidly increasing seaborne trade. The most striking feature of this development is the simultaneous buoyancy in all the sub sectors shipping, ports and shipbuilding. This provides tremendous opportunities for all the players in the maritime field.

With the Government encouraging private sector participation in port infrastructure development under the National Maritime Development Program, the Ports & Shipping Industry is poised for spectacular growth in order to meet the surge in demand.

Published in October 2008, 'Directory of Shipyards and Marine Service Providers' has been comprehensively researched and prepared, to bring you a fully up to date guide to Indian shipyard industry.

Why spend hundreds of hours searching for new contacts? Invest in a copy TODAY!

Content:
This report covers name and product details of 49 shipyards and marine service providers of India in alphabetical as well as location wise order. Look at the information you'll get in the 'Directory of Shipyards and Marine Service Providers'

• Company name -49 entries
• Address-49
• Email-35
• Phone number-48
• Fax number -42 entries
• Mobile -6 entries

Format: PDF File
Total no of pages – 35
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Price:
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Ordering the report is simple. You can order your copy to reports@steelguru.com, who will send you an invoice of the report.

Japan to stop tinplate export to Indonesia in November

It is reported that Japanese steel mills are planning to stop exporting TMBP to Indonesia in November 2008.

On the other hand, China’s Baosteel will decrease the domestic tinplate price by USD 103 per tonne and WISCO will do the same. In that case, the two steel mills are causing tinplate demand in Asia to nosedive.

For the fourth quarter of tinplate in the South East Asia export trade, Japan plans to increase its price by USD 100 per tonne. Because of good demand, Thailand has agreed to the Japanese price.

In Latin American, the tinplate demand keeps rising. Regarding the price of other steels as the reference of the price adjustment, Japan will carry out tinplate exporting negotiations next spring

(Sourced from Yieh.com)

US HDG market weakens on sluggish demand

It is reported that the hot dipped galvanized steel market in the US remains weak.

The domestic ex work price of HGI with base size released by Middle West mills in America has dropped to about USD 1,080 to USD 1,200 per tonne. However, the ex work price range is quite wide among mills that the price disparity is over USD 110 per tonne.

On the other hand, for the offers from overseas, the import prices of HGI from China and Taiwan are being quoted at USD 1,300 to USD 1,350 per tonne and USD 1,370 to USD 1,410 per tonne respectively.

(Sourced from Yieh.com)

Toyota Motor FY 08 operating profit may fall by 40% - Report

Nikkei reported that Toyota Motor Corporation's full year operating profit may decline by 40% as global market turmoil cuts vehicle demand.

As per report, operating profit may fall to about JPY 1.3 trillion in the year ending March 31st 2009, JPY 300 billion less than projected. Toyota may miss its global sales goal of 9.5 million vehicles and may sell less than the 9.37 million units in 2007 and revenue may be lower than the projected JPY 25 trillion.

Ms Trina Ewald spokeswoman of Toyota said that it has not announced revisions to earnings for the current year.
Toyota faces higher than expected steel prices and currency movements could reduce profit further.

Directory of Overseas Scrap Suppliers to India

India is large market for import of steel scrap and this is the directory which is going to help many interested group to know this industry.

Published in September 2008, 'Directory of Scrap Suppliers to India' has been comprehensively researched and prepared, to bring you a fully up to date guide to overseas scrap supplier.

Why spend hundreds of hours searching for new contacts? Invest in a copy TODAY!

Content:
This report covers name and product details of 1191 overseas scrap suppliers to India in alphabetical as well as location wise order. Look at the information you'll get in the 'Directory of Scrap Suppliers to India'

• Company name -1191 entries
• Address-1191 entries
• Email-1074
• Phone number-1140
• Fax number -431 entries

Format:
PDF File
Total no of pages – 545

Delivery by Email on receipt of payment

Price:
USD 500 or equivalent in INR
Additional Charges would be levied for delivery of file on a CD or in printed form

How to order:
Ordering the report is simple. You can order your copy to reports@steelguru.com, who will send you an invoice of the report.

WSA sets target for data collection

World Steel Association is reporting success to date on phase 1 of its CO2 emissions data collection program and has set a stretch target to the end of the year. The data collection program is the cornerstone of the global steel sector approach to CO2 reduction as proposed by the World Steel Association.

Mr Ian Christmas director general of WSA said that "Phase 1 of this data collection program is now well underway. Over 56 of our member companies have provided data to date, representing more than 178 sites. This accounts for 32% of global steel production and 60% of world steel member steel production. Our target is to achieve 75% of member steel production by the end of 2008."

He said that "It is our intention that once the data is collected and verified there will be reporting on a national or regional basis by the steel industry all around the world. Over time, we hope to show real progress by the industry in reducing our carbon dioxide emissions for every tonne of steel we produce. It is also intended that this process will enable steel companies and national and regional associations to establish targets for future commitments to reduce specific emissions. The World Steel Association will hold individual plant data completely confidential and we will be establishing a very powerful and detailed database to help our members know where they are in relation to the averages either in their region or the world."

Mr Philippe Varin CEO of Corus and also chairman of WSA Climate Change Policy Group said that "Today the world steel industry accounts for between 4 and 5% of total man made greenhouse gases. We make more than 1.3 billion tonnes of steel which therefore produces over 2 billion tonnes of CO2. The challenge for us is to reduce this substantially over the next 40 years in the face of growing demand. There are four major building blocks to the steel industry’s global sector approach, the cornerstone of which is the engagement of all the major steel producers around the world. We are working with our customers to produce even more CO2 efficient applications of steel. We are promoting best practice around the world. We are engaged in major research and development of breakthrough technology. We are committed to reducing our CO2 emissions and successful data collection will lead to benchmarking improvements based on actual performance data. Each building block involves important commitments and actions by steel companies and there are also important implications for governments in choosing the appropriate policies to support each element of our approach."

Mr Varin concluded that "No one should underestimate the contribution that steel can make for a more energy efficient world. Steel is not a single product; there are thousands of grades of steel and many new grades are developed each year. The applications of these new grades can lead to stronger, lighter, safer structures and passenger cars than we have had before. As an example, using Advanced High Strength Steel, about 2.2 tonnes less greenhouse gas is produced over the life cycle of a typical five door family car. With 71 million passenger vehicles being produced annually this would save more than 156 million tonnes of CO2 equivalents. The new steels can produce more energy efficient buildings and factories. Electrical steels can greatly improve the efficiency of electrical motors in reducing their energy consumption per unit of output. Steel, working with architects, industrial designers and our customers, will have a major positive contribution to moving towards a more energy efficient world. Today, typical modern wind turbine towers of 70 meters weigh only 140 tonnes. This represents a 50% reduction in weight from using standard steel and a saving of more than 200 tonnes of CO2 for each tower compared to 10 years ago. Governments can support this by setting the appropriate regulations and standards, be it building regulations that promote carbon neutral steel residential housing or rules for motorcars which seek to encourage the design and use of the most efficient vehicles in terms of energy over their complete life cycle."

Vietnamese steel prices in downward trends

Vietnam News Agency reported that, with the current price of steel, buyers are profiting VND 5 million per tonne with a price level which has been described by steel manufacturers as unimaginably low.

Mr Pham Chi Cuong chairman of Vietnam Steel Association said that steel manufacturers have been miserable as the sale prices cannot help offset the overly high bank lending interest rates. He added that what manufacturers are expecting now is that inflation will be reduced to a one digit level, which would return steel consumption to normal. If not, the situation will become more serious for the producers.

Mr Cuong admitted that the wrong forecasts about the demand for steel and ingot steel by the association have pushed manufacturers against the wall. However, he said that no one could imagine that steel consumption will be dramatically reduced in the construction season.

He said that at some moments, the ingot steel price in the domestic market was even higher than the finished steel price, which led to the re-export of ingot steel, steel that was never before seen in Vietnam. Fearing that there would not be enough ingot steel for local production, the Vietnam Steel Corporation swiftly asked to raise the export tax rate on ingot steel exports to 30% to 40%.

VSA has proposed three solutions to rescue steel enterprises. First, it is necessary to boost exports as the domestic demand is not big enough to consume the large stocks. Second, steel manufacturers need capital. Third, the state should speed up the construction projects and push up disbursement in order to help steel companies sell their steel.

Directory of Construction Companies in India

One can have an idea about the importance of the construction industry in India from the fact that it is the second largest contributor to the GDP after agriculture. The industry provides employment to more than 3% of the population. Its market size is around USD 55 billion and is growing at around 7% to 8% per annually, faster than the GDP growth. As the Construction sector is growing faster than the country’s project GDP growth, there exist a tremendous potential for development in the related area.

“Directory of Construction Companies in India” is one of the top sources of information available on a construction companies in India. It is one of the most comprehensive and accurate directory of construction companies in India that ever published. This powerful directory is your connection to the entire construction companies in India.

Published in August 2008, “Directory of Construction Companies in India” has been comprehensively researched and prepared, to bring you a fully up to date guide to Indian Construction companies.

Whether you are a product manager, in charge of marketing, raw material seller, in equipment business or simply interested to remain in touch with the latest developments in the construction companies in India, this directory will save you time and effort in finding the information you need. This report will enable you to profile construction companies in India, build new business prospects, generate new customers, discover who your competitors are and make vital contacts. You would save the time, money and effort of doing your own research. This directory has been especially compiled to assist with market research, strategic planning, as well as contacting prospective clients or suppliers. It is also an indispensable guide to India’s construction sector.

Why spend hundreds of hours searching for new contacts? Invest in a copy TODAY!

This report covers name and product details of 1000 Construction Companies in India in alphabetical as well as location wise order. Look at the information you'll get in the 'Directory of Construction Companies in India’
1. Company name -1000 entries
2. Address-1000 entries
3. Phone number-951
4. Fax number -652 entries
5. Mobile number-349
6. Email -749 entries
7. URL – 593

Format - PDF File (Total no of pages – 545), delivery by Email on receipt of payment of USD 950 or equivalent in INR. Additional charges would be levied for delivery of file on a CD or in printed form

How to order
Ordering the report is simple. You can order your copy to reports@steelguru.com for gettimç an invoice for the report.

Orders for new container ships plunge - Report

According to London based Clarkson, the world’s biggest ship broker, orders for new container ships have dried up as vessel charter rates and ocean freight rates tumble and volume growth slows on key liner trade routes. Enquiries to shipbuilders about new tonnage have hit the floor with volumes and earnings stalling, owners’ taste for new builds has slowed right down.

The collapse in orders, which has affected all ship sizes, follows 5 straight years of historically high deliveries. Only 179 container ships were contracted in the first eight months of this year, down by 49% YoY. This compares with a record 566 contracts in 2005, 479 in 2006 and 530 in 2007.

The monthly number of orders has been on a stark downward trend since the final quarter of 2007. June was the only exception when a spate of 70 orders temporarily bucked the trend, bolstered by significant contracts placed by Maersk Line, the world’s largest liner operator.

Annual global container trade growth has dropped below the double digit level in 2008 for the first time since 2001. This has simultaneously triggered a slide in ocean freight rates and a decline in ship charter rates off about 20% year to date as carrier demand for additional tonnage slows.

A 3,500 TEU gearless Panamax vessel is earning USD 26,000 a day on charter, down from USD 29,500 in June and more than USD 12,000 off of average daily earnings in 2006. Carriers and charter ship owners also are being quoted higher prices for new vessels. With the cost of raw materials, particularly steel, rising, long order books already in place and relatively healthier demand from other shipping sectors, shipyards are under no pressure yet to drop prices.

A 3,500 TEU ship is being quoted at USD 67 million as compared with USD 63 million at the end of 2007, while a 1,100 TEU vessel is unchanged at USD 27.5 million but still USD 5.5 million more than at the end of 2006. Prices for previously owned vessels, however, have eased with a 3,500 TEU ship fetching USD 46.5 million, down by USD 3 million since the end of 2007.

Directory of Refractory Makers in India

'Directory of Refractory Makers in India' in India is one of the top sources of information available on a refractory makers in India. It is one of the most comprehensive and accurate directory of refractory makers in India that ever published. This powerful directory is your connection to the entire refractory companies in India.

Major steel firms targeting more assets in Mexico - Report

Bloomberg reported that major steel producers may acquire more assets in Mexico to reduce operating costs, export products to the US and sell more to domestic automakers.

Mr Octavio Rangel head of Mexico's Iron & Steel Chamber of Commerce said that "There may be more consolidation. Mexican companies are attractive to suitors because of the access they have to international markets and the diversity of production.''

According to the chamber, ArcelorMittal and Ternium SA led a buying spree of at least USD 7.97 billion in Mexican steel assets since December 2006. It said that another USD 9.9 billion is being spent or proposed to expand annual production capacity by about 10 million tonnes or 57% by 2013.

The industry in Mexico is expecting demand to grow 4.2% annually through 2013. The government wants to spend USD 50 billion on port expansions, at least two new airports and new highways and housing. Ford Motor Co plans to invest USD 2.4 billion on new plants in Mexico and energy companies need more new equipment and pipes as they expand the search for oil and gas in Latin America and the US.

Mr Rangel said that domestic steel producers may divert exports to China and other foreign markets if demand from the US falls as the credit crisis worsens. Mexico currently exports 30% of its steel to the US. He added that recent investments by Tenaris SA, ArcelorMittal and Gerdau SA for the oil and natural gas industry will not be affected by a credit crisis.

Mexico produced 17.6 million tonnes of steel in 2007 and may rise to 18.5 million tonnes in 2008. The country imported 7.3 million tonnes of steel in 2007, mostly specialized products.

Mitsui OSK tumbles as commodities demand falls

Bloomberg reported that Mitsui OSK Lines Limited dropped to the lowest in more than 3 years in Tokyo along with domestic rivals on concern demand slowing economic growth will cut demand for shipping commodities.

As per report Mitsui OSK declined 5.1% to JPY 713, the lowest close since July 2005. Nippon Yusen KK dropped 3.5% and Kawasaki Kisen Kaisha Limited slid 0.8%.

The Topix Marine Transportation Index dropped 3.7% and is the biggest decliner in the past week after the Nonferrous Metals Index out of 33 groups in the Topix index.

The Baltic Dry Index dropped by 0.3% to 2992, near a two year low.

EU needs more investment in ports - ESPO

According to European Sea Ports Organization, a recently completed study commissioned by the European Commission concludes that there is a mounting need for investments in ports in Europe, particularly for the handling of containers and liquefied natural gas.

ESPO said that the study recommends that the procedures for environmental assessment and all related approvals that are in practice in the EU today should be assessed and reviewed. The aim should be to establish procedures that cut the overall lead time significantly without giving in to any of the environmental demands.

The so called OPTIMAR study was prepared by an international consortium led by Lloyd’s Register Fairplay. It contains an analysis of the geographical distribution and evolving patterns of seaborne trade, an outline of signals of future change in shipping.

ESPO also notes that similar recommendations have been made by a group of senior shipping professionals which the commission invited to deliver an independent opinion as part of the preparations on the Maritime Transport Strategy. The group of twelve was chaired by Mr Knud Pontoppidan CEO of AP Moller Maersk and assisted by Mr Leo Delwaide former president of Antwerp Port Authority and Mr Emanuele Grimaldi CEO of Grimaldi Lines.

US Steel Kosice paying close attention to market conditions

It is reported that, in connection with the global financial crisis, US Steel Kosice is paying close attention to conditions under which its customers do business.

Mr Jan Baca spokesman of US Steel Kosice said that "We will adapt our production to their needs. I would not comment on further details or US Steel's development estimates."

Mr Kari Happonen president of Finnish software company Ixonos, that operates its biggest foreign facility in Kosice and which exports all of its production, said that the crisis has not affected the company so far. He said that it is also due to the stable developments on the mobile IT technologies and software innovations markets.

He added that "We already had a recession at the turn of the millennium. We got through it relatively without harm. Our revenues have been increasing every year and we expect growth next year too."

Mr Farrell appointed to Alabama Iron and Steel Council

Mr Bob Riley governor of Alabama has appointed Mr Jim Farrell president of Blastcrete Equipment Co to the Alabama Iron & Steel Council. With the completion of the ThyssenKrupp plant in Mobile, the state of Alabama is expected to become the second largest steel producer in the US by 2010.

Mr Riley said that "The Alabama iron and steel industry is not only one of our state's most historical industrial enterprises but each year grows in national scope and importance. This council was formed to make sure that Alabama continues to be the predominant force in a sector that literally drives the national economy."

Mr Farrell said that "It is truly an honor to have been asked to serve on this important business development council. The future growth of the state's steel industry will heighten Alabama's profile nationally and internationally."

Blastcrete manufactures and sells affordable, easy to use concrete mixers, concrete pumps and shotcrete sprayers for use around the world. They also stock a full line of accessories and replacement parts.

Southern Steel confident it can weather economic crisis

Mr CB Koay group financial controller of Malaysian Southern Steel Bhd said that it is confident it can weather a potential economic crisis due to its well balanced product mix and diverse export markets.

He added that "Our steel products comprise construction and industrial grade steel. Thus if there is a slowdown in the construction or industrial sector, our products are well balanced to protect the group during such economic climate."

Mr Koay said that the group’s steel products were also exported worldwide, thus there is no one market that the group is solely dependent upon. The group exports to Europe, the US, Russia and the Middle East.

COSCO began construction of semi submersible production platform

Cosco Shipyard Group began construction of semi submersible production platform N262 Octabuoy, which is destined for ATP Oil & Gas' Cheviot project in the UK sector of the North Sea.

The steel cutting ceremony for N262 Octabuoy was recently held at Cosco Nantong Shipyard. The floating production unit will be built based on Moss Maritime's Octabuoy design.

Cosco is commissioned to construct the hull of the FPU. The hull construction is expected to involve about 20,000 tonnes of steel structures and scheduled to be complete within the first half of 2010.

The Octabuoy is a semi submersible production platform, but it is also able to accommodate complete drilling facilities. The Octabuoy SDM platform can be fully equipped quayside. On the Octabuoy Classic the deck can be completed quay-side and installed by float over or lift-on inshore or offshore, eliminating expensive and time consuming offshore installation and commissioning.

Slovak president to meet with US Steel officials

AP reported that US Steel executives plan to meet with Mr Ivan Gasparovic President of Slovak in Pittsburgh.

Mr Gasparovic is expected to discuss US Steel Kosice, US Steel's subsidiary in Kosice.

US Steel Kosice employs more than 15,000 people, makes more than 5 million tonnes of raw steel a year and recently expanded to include a galvanized steel operation.

Mr Gasparovic is also expected to meet Mr Luke Ravenstahl mayor of Pittsburgh when he visits the city.

Egyptian Iron and Steel yearly net surges up by 80% YoY

Reuters reported that Egyptian Iron and Steel Co's net profit jumped by 80.4% to EGP 355.71 million (USD 65.1 million) in the financial year ended June.

A stock exchange statement gave no further details.

The state controlled company, Egypt's third biggest listed steel company has been going through a restructuring plan led by the Ministry of Investment.

Recession reports - Sales of steel products hurt in Pakistan

The News cited Mr Shamon Baqar Ali President of Karachi Iron and Steel Merchants Association as saying that low economic activity affected sales of steel products in the month of Ramazan and after Eid the prices of those products were expected to come down as a result of a fall in the international market.

Mr Ali said that prices of billets had decreased internationally but if power and gas tariff increased and the rupee depreciated there would be a small decline in local steel prices.

Mr Shahab Ahmed copartner in Amaan Steel said that the demand of steel was disappointingly low as the country faced a sharp economic slowdown and uncertainty on the political front. Like all other sectors, the steel industry had also been badly affected with lacklustre business activity.

He said that “We had stopped all our operations well before a week from Eid and work will resume from Monday next week. Our workers have gone to their hometowns in upcountry areas for Eid holidays and we would make the most of this time and complete maintenance work of the factory.”

He said that “There had been a complete halt to our business since July this year. Both supply and demand sides are presenting a gloomy picture,” adding the steel sector was facing the brunt of low economic activity.

Mr Ali Ahmed chairman of Pakistan Steel Re rolling Mills Association said that slack economic activity and small number of government projects had hit sales of steel products. He said that the construction sector had been very slow during the last three months, especially in the last month which saw insignificant steel demand.

He said that “We are not very much hopeful of a better change in near future as government policies are not supporting the steel industry. Industries had already stopped operations from Saturday as all workers are on Eid holidays. Most of our workers hail from Punjab and it is expected that industry operations will resume next week.”

Re rolling mills of the city would remain closed for about 10 days due to the Eid season. But the fact is that high production and low demand have irked steel producers, especially in Ramazan usually a period of slow activity.

Demand for drilling rigs to remain strong in coming years

Gulf News reported that demand for drilling rigs is likely to remain strong over the coming years as energy companies search for more sources of oil and gas.

Mr Jerry Smith MD of rig maker Maritime Industrial Services Company in Sharjah said that Middle East and North Africa region needs at least 12 to 15 new offshore drilling rigs within 2 years. He said that about 100 offshore rigs are operating in the region currently but many of them have aged and should be replaced with new ones.

Mr Smith said that “There is a lot of growth in this business. We see a shortage of rigs.”

Since the company started manufacturing rigs at its yard in Sharjah in 2006, it has received seven orders with a combined value of USD 1 billion. Its latest contract is worth USD 400 million and comes from Bahrain based MENAdrill, an oil and gas drilling services company launched by First Energy Bank this year.

He said that the demand for rigs is coming from stepped up global exploration activity amid high crude oil prices which make search for energy resources in difficult places more viable.

Mr Esam Janahi chairman of First Energy Bank said that "Slots for new rig construction are very rare in today's market so the company signed the deal with MIS when it got the opportunity for placing an order.”

Mr Mohammad Al Nusuf another official of First Energy Bank said that "There is a pressing need for significant investment in oil drilling equipment in the region. The demand for investment in equipment is only matched by the global market's demand for oil. This investment is a farsighted one and one that recognizes in the long term the demand for production will again be critical.”

Bajaj Electricals plans lighting unit in Saudi Arabia

Project Today reported that Indian lighting major Bajaj Electricals is planning to set up a factory in Saudi Arabia to support its engineering and projects business.

The company is examining the feasibility of starting a factory due to large demand for its products in the Middle East. The company will make equipments required to provide turnkey services in electrical and illumination engineering at the proposed factory.

285 projects worth USD 260 billion under way in Saudi Arabia

According to the latest analysis, more than 285 civil construction projects worth in excess of USD260 billion are currently underway or in design in Saudi Arabia.

Details of the continuing surge in the kingdom’s civil construction market were revealed on Tuesday at Cityscape Dubai where the latest addition to the world’s largest international business to business property development brand was announced Cityscape Saudi Arabia.

The Proleads database of active civil projects under construction or in design dramatically illustrates the extent of the continuing boom in Saudi Arabia’s property development industry with the top ten alone valued at more than USD 200 billion.

For the most part, these projects are massive, entirely new cities being created where there was once only desert. The following are the top ten civil construction projects in Saudi Arabia under construction or in design, according to the database.

1. King Abdullah Economic City – USD 93 billion
Construction is underway by Emaar Economic City Company of a city along the Red Sea between Jeddah and Rabigh including a seaport, and industrial, financial, resorts, residential and educational zones.

2. Prince Abdulaziz Bin Mousaed Economic City – USD 53 billion
Work is underway at Hail on a city to include a logistics centre, airport, an agricultural and entertainment zones, a mining city, a petrochemical zone, a business centre, an educational zone and a residential area. The project is expected to be completed by 2025

3. Jizan Economic City – USD 30 billion
Construction has begun on this city in southern Saudi Arabia close to the Yemen border and will include a port, aluminum smelter, steel and copper processing, an oil refinery, fish processing and other industries; a business district, residential areas, marina, education and hospitality facilities.

4. Jeddah Project Mile High Tower – USD 10 billion
The Kingdom Holding Company is designing a 1600 meter skyscraper to form part of the Jeddah project, north of the city.

5. Shamieh Project – USD 9.3 billion
This Makkah project is in design to include residential apartments, commercial centres, hotels, schools, mosques, hospitals and related facilities, car parks and transport corridors to carry pilgrims. The development is located north of the Haram mosque in Makkah.

6. Medina Knowledge Economic City – USD 7 billion
This project is under construction for Taiba Technological and Economic Information Centre, an interactive museum on Prophet Mohammed’s (PBUH) life, a centre for studies of Islamic civilization and a centre for medical studies, biosciences and integrated medical services. It includes hotels and housing accommodating 200,000 people.

7. Al Zahira City – USD 4 billion
Design for this development on Palestine Road east Jeddah includes 20,000 housing units and 150,000 square meters of surrounding gardens.

8. Jabal Omar – USD 3.3 billion
This Makkah project is in design for 39 buildings including residential towers, offices tower, commercial centre and five-star hotels. The project will have 4,500 shops, 3,000 showrooms. The residential area is planned for 34,500 people, open prayer space for 85,000 worshipers and prayer places in each tower with a capacity of more of the 200,000 thousand worshipers.

9. Injaz – USD 3 billion
This mixed use Dammam project is being designed on 3.3 million square meters of land on the Arabian Gulf.

10. Riyadh Marriland Leisure Park – USD 3 billion
This project is in design to include an animal world, equestrian centre, family entertainment, a scientific and historical museum, an ecological resort, golf course, retail park, a high tech park, a nature reserve, hunting zone, exhibition centre, diplomat area, a man made lagoon, hotels and media village.

Pakistan and China to create a JV for power sector investment

Pakistan's Daily News has reported that Pakistan and China are set to establish a corporation to attract investment for both nuclear and coal power plants as well as large dams in the former country. The Pak-China Joint Power Corporation will also help develop technology and technical expertise for new power projects.

According to sources from Pakistan's Water and Power Development Authority, Pakistani and Chinese authorities had discussed the proposal during a meeting in the Foreign Office in late September. The framework for the organization would be devised in a minister level meeting in China in the near future.

The new organization will solicit investment from Chinese investors for the Basha dam project, the Thar coal project and Phases 3 and 4 of the Chashma nuclear power plant. Another hydroelectric power project the new corporation would seek funds for is the Neelum-Jehlum hydropower project.

The two new nuclear power projects at Chashma which will generate 640 MW of power are estimated to cost PKR 129.37 billion. The government has allocated PKR 100 million for the projects as part of the Public Sector Development Program for the current fiscal year and expects to get PKR 80.36 billion for the projects from international donor institutions and other countries. The projects are part of the government's 'Vision 2030' plan which includes generating 8000 MW from nuclear power plants.

Arabian Construction wins USD 1.7 billion Reem Island contract

Reuter reported that Abu Dhabi property developers Sorouh Real Estate and Tameer Holding Investment have awarded a contract worth AED 6.2 billion to Arabian Construction Co to build a flagship project on Abu Dhabi's Reem Island.

As per report, the Gate Towers is a mixed use JV project on Reem Island. ACC will construct 6 of the eight towers at The Gate District. Construction will start in early 2009 and will be completed in over the next 4 years. ACC is currently building the Sky and Sun Towers in Abu Dhabi for Sorouh as well as Princess the world's tallest residential tower and Elite Towers in Dubai for Tameer.

Pakistan prepared blue print of new petroleum policy

The News cited Mr GA Sabri Acting Petroleum Secretary as saying that Petroleum ministry has finalized the draft of new petroleum policy which will be presented for approval in the next meeting of the Economic Coordination Committee of the cabinet.

As per report, Petroleum Policy 2008 will help expedite the exploration of oil and gas reserves after last year’s policy failed to generate any activity at a time when the country faced severe energy crisis. The existing gas shortfall of more than 500 million cubic feet per day which was previously projected to surface in 2010 has already pushed the government to talk of a strict gas load management program in the coming winter season. The indigenously produced natural gas meets more than 50% of the country’s energy needs and is a basic fuel used in the industrial sector which will now have to run without normal supply for the next three months.

Mr Shafqat Elahi former chairman of All Pakistan Textile Mills Association about the effects of proposed gas load shedding said that “There will be a complete blackout. Last year, I had to close my company for 45 days because of this.”

Gas load management had become a regular feature in the last few years during which increase in its consumption outstripped production. From November to January additional gas has to be made available for domestic consumers in Punjab and NWFP where it is needed for running water geysers and room heaters. Industries in relatively warmer Sindh and Balochistan provinces have so far been spared from gas load shedding.

As a precaution companies often use liquefied petroleum gas as an alternative. But the cost of installing tanks and LPG price make it unfeasible for many business concerns, especially those belonging to the struggling industry of textiles.

Mr Rana Tauseef another textile manufacturer in Punjab said that the price of LPG is too high compared to piped gas. He said that “I have already made commitments to supply textile products. If I use it now my cost will go up.” He added that the government must start focusing on important economic issues like increasing exploration of gas reserves in the country.

Mr Elahi said that the import of liquefied natural gas is the easiest solution to the problem as it could be channeled into integrated transmission and distribution system of gas utilities SSGC and SNGPL.

INSTC meeting opens in Baku

MNA reported that Railway officials from Iran, Russia and Azerbaijan held a meeting in Baku, Azerbaijan to discuss ways for expediting the International North-South Transport Corridor plan.

IRNA reported that Iran, Russia, India and Oman signed a MoU in September 2000 for the establishment of the INSTC that is considered as one of the important trade routes linking Southeast Asian counties to Russia, Central Asian states, the Caucasus and Eastern Europe.

Establishing some 8 kilometers of railroad in Azerbaijan mainland and linking it to Iran’s national railway network will also be discussed in the meeting. Based on the plan some 300 kilometers of railroads will be established inside Iran.

Iran, Russia, India, Kazakhstan, Belarus, Oman, Tajikistan, Azerbaijan, Armenia, Syria, Ukraine, Turkey, Kyrgyzstan and Bulgaria constitute the 14 members of the INSTC plan.

Iran ready to provide electricity to Pakistan

Business Recorder cited Mr Mashallah Shakiri Iranian Ambassador as saying that his country was ready to provide electricity to Pakistan and the Iranian government had adequate capacity to carry out development projects.

Mr Shakiri during a meeting with Mr Salman Faruqui deputy chairman planning Commission said that the two sides agreed that bilateral cooperation in various sectors of economy like energy, railways, roads and trade would be enhanced.

The Iranian envoy apprised that Iran was already working on Sahara hydel power project on the river Chenab and had raised its capacity from initially proposed generation capacity of 65 MW to 130 MW through Independent Power Producers. He said that the present volume of trade between the two countries showed that the bilateral trade potential was untapped. The volume of trade between Iran and other regional countries is significantly higher than trade between Pakistan and Iran.

According to him, one of the main problems was lack of physical as well as institutional connectivity between the two countries. He also showed his country's interest in enhancing the cooperation in banking sector by opening up branches of banks in each other's countries on reciprocal basis.

Mr Salman Faruqui deputy chairman of Planning Commission said that Pakistan was interested in importing electricity from Iran as Pakistan was currently facing power shortage. He suggested bilateral negotiations to work out the modalities related to pricing and transmission. He appreciated the proposal to establish a Joint Shipping Company to boost maritime cooperation and mutual trade and promised to examine the proposal. Pakistan National Shipping Company would be asked to look into this matter.

Mr Faruqui also underlined the importance of modern railroad between Quetta and Taftan. For this purpose he said that funds could be raised together with Iran and by using the forum of Economic Cooperation Organization or Islamic Bank. Both the sides agreed to increase cooperation in health services and pharmaceutical sector as well. Mr Faruqui informed Mr Shakiri that PC had good mutual relationships with its Indian and Chinese counterparts and it wanted the same level of institutional interaction with its Iranian counterpart.

Mr Shikri appreciated this proposal and assured that Iran would welcome this institutional linkage that would further enhance business to business contacts for regional development.

Pakistani cement exports swells to 2.5 million tonnes in Q1

Business Recorder reported that Pakistan's cement sector has maintained its healthy growth as its exports witnessed a raise of 60% to 2.5 million tonnes during the Q1 of the current fiscal year while the local dispatches have scaled down by 15% because of the slow construction activities.

Industry sources said that although the local cement manufacturing units are taking fully advantage of cheapest and easy availability of raw material and exporting the huge quantity of cement to the regional countries, but the decline in the local sales is a threat to the cement sector which could also hurt the profitability.

They said that “The local sale is on decline despite the price stability for the last few months and due to slow construction activities on the back of poor economic circumstances.”

Mr Shahzad Ahmed secretary of All Pakistan Cement Manufacturers Association said that the country's cement export has crossed 2 million mark during the Q1 and reached 2.497 million tonnes as compared to 1.565 million tonnes during the same period last year.

The cement exports during September 2008 has also been gone up by 18% to 0.89 million tonnes as compared to some 0.754 million tonnes during September 2007. The local sale of cement has been gradually declining and during the Q1 the overall local dispatches has down by 15.5% during the Q1.

With current decline overall local dispatches stood at 4.833 million tonnes during the Q1 of current fiscal year as compared to 5.71 million tonnes during the corresponding period last fiscal year. The local dispatches of cement during September 2008 also showed a dip of 17% to 1.497 million tonnes from 1.8 million tonnes.

Industry sources said that the cement sector overall performance is encouraging however the declining trend of local dispatches a matter of concern which would hurt overall industry.

Qatargas and Nakilat receives the delivery of Mozah

Pipeline Dubai reported that Qatargas and Nakilat have received the delivery of Mozah the world’s largest LNG carrier at the Samsung Heavy Industries shipyard on Geoje Island last week.

Mozah, world’s first Q Max category vessel joins Nakilat’s growing fleet of LNG carriers to transport super cooled gas produced by Qatargas 2 to customers in Europe. Q-Max carriers are purpose built for Nakilat and will be on long-term charter to Qatargas.

Q-Flex and the even larger Q-Max are a new generation of LNG mega ships. Q-Max has 80% more capacity than conventional LNG carriers with about 40% lower energy requirements due to the economies of scale created by their size and the efficiency of the engines.

Mr Faisal al Suwaidi CEO of Qatargas Operating Company said that “This is the first of the new generation of liquefied natural gas carriers for the company and we are pleased to see this ship delivered safely. It is an exciting time for Qatargas as the pioneers of these new LNG ships and the industry as a whole as we make this step change.”

Mr Mohamed Ghannam MD of Nakilat said that “Mozah is our flagship, the very first Q-Max ever built and the largest and most advanced LNG carrier in the world. Mozah’s delivery is a key milestone for Nakilat as it is the first of our 14 Q-Max ships and also the first of our 25 wholly owned LNG carriers in our fleet of some 54 vessels which are being built in the Korean shipyards to service Qatar’s massive LNG expansion projects.”

Iraq urged to approve Lukoil deal

Daily News reported that Russian oil firm LUKOIL urged Iraq's oil minister recently to remove obstacles to its investment in the West Qurna deposit, a month after China became the first country to renegotiate a Saddam Hussein-era oil deal.

Mr Vagit Alekperov chief executive of LUKOIL said that Mr Hussain Al Shahristani Iraqi Oil Minister was solely responsible for delaying the West Qurna deal, despite Russia's willingness to write off most of the Middle Eastern country's debt.

Mr Alekperov said that “We have offered our expertise and if there are political aspects, to remove them. Unfortunately the Energy Ministry has taken no steps. He said that this is despite the fact Russia is probably the country that has written off the biggest Iraqi debt in order to ease the country's fate.”

Russia agreed in February to write off most of Iraq's remaining USD 12.9 billion debt and signed a separate deal to open up the country to USD 4 billion in investment from Russian firms. Moscow had already forgiven Iraq the bulk of its debt.

Baosteel and Shagang mull output cutback

China Iron & Steel Association in a recent report noted that leading domestic mills like Baosteel and Shagang are mulling output cutback in light of the across the board steel price fall and decreasing enquiries.

Domestic steel market has undergone an extreme curve so far this year, with steel prices mounting up explosively in the first half and then, turning around and diving in the second, which is rarely seen in recent past years.

The report said price for major steel products is now staying at a normal level, with price for construction steel continuing falling and that for flat products dropping sharply. Offers from traders in Beijing have witnessed consecutive slides, with price decline amounting to CNY 320 per tonne to CNY 350 per tonne.

Falling trend for steel production has been formed after rounds of steel price plunges. And pig iron output in August has fallen 1.5% YoY, the first decline in many years. Likewise in late September major steel mills in China gathered in Hebei and agreed to cut output by 20%.

According to CISA, the sharp price fall is resulted from the global economic slowdown, export check, steel mills' piling up stocks and traders' panic mood that has been intensified by mills' ex-works price cut.

(Source: Beijing Times)

Chinese HRC market to face hard day this winter

It is reported that Chinese HRC market is so sluggish that most steel makers and traders believe that they will face hard days this winter.

Most traders believe that weak market prices are going to sustain for some time. There is small likelihood that prices would see strong rebound in October, but there is no great room for further drop. Such viewpoints are based on following reasons and facts:

1. Downstream demand is likely to increase in Q4, but they are not strong enough to support great price rebound. In general, such industries as automobiles, home appliances and constructions are facing pressure of tight credit, high cost, less export order and weak domestic sales. Some small and medium sized producers even have gone bankruptcy. However, Beijing has announced to take a series of measures to support small or private enterprises so that domestic demand could improve. But it remains to be seen whether it could lead to more steel consumption.

2. Great drop in ex works price and the dive in future market have bolstered the sluggish market. Steel makers have cut ex works prices to reflect the substantial price changes on the market. At the same time, prices on future market are leading the slump, which has accelerated the market collapse.

3. International financial turmoil has cast adverse effect on steel market. The subprime debt crisis has led to great drop in house prices and further dampens the development of real estate industry in both USA and the EU, which has lowered the steel consumption. HRC ex works price in USA and Russia have fallen below USD 1000 per tonne and there is likely to be further room for decrease.

4. CR steel price decrease has also affected that of HRC.

Despite negative factors, the output cut by steel makers is expected to balance supply and demand. In addition, current price is quite close to production cost line and there is small likelihood that prices are to drop by large range.

(Sourced from MySteel)

Ansteel Bayuquan steel project starts operation

It is reported that a 1,580 continuous hot rolled production line at Ansteel Bayuquan steel project manufactured the first piece of hot rolled sheet with billet produced from its 1,450 casting machine as raw material, marking an entire run through of the project consisting of iron making, steel making, continuous casting and hot rolled processes.

As per report, the continuous hot rolled production line is another self-integrated machine with world leading technology next to its likes including Ansteel’s 1,700 and 2,150 lines and Jinan Steel’s 1,700 lines.

Chinese coated steel market continues to soften

It is reported that coated steel prices in China continued their downward trend recently.

In Ningbo market, price of galvanized steel coil with thickness of 0.5mm was being quoted at CNY 6,700 per tonne a decrease of CNY 100 per tonne from that before the holiday. Price of Huaye’s pre painted galvanized steel coil with thickness of 0.25mm was at CNY 7,900 per tonne dropping by CNY 200 per tonne as compared with that before the holiday.

In Nanjing market, price of galvanized steel coil decreased as well. Benxi Steel’s galvanized steel coil price was at CNY 5,800 per tonne for the thickness of 1.0mm. Shandong Yuanda’s galvanized steel coil price for 0.23mm thickness was at CNY 7,300 per tonne down by CNY 400 per tonne from that before holiday. And Tianjin Xinyu’s pre painted galvanized steel coil price for 0.476mm thickness was at CNY 7,100 per tonne reduced by CNY 150 per tonne as well.

China to carry out its responsibility in global economic meltdown - Mr Zhang

According to Mr Zhang Dejiang vice Premier of China, China will carry out its responsibilities in global efforts to conquer the economic meltdown.

Mr Zhang in a meeting with Mr Christian Wulff Prime Minister of Germany's state of Lower Saxony said that the economic meltdown in the United States not only cast a shadow on Europe, but also influenced China. He told Mr Wulff that "If we two countries enhance cooperation, we can increase our ability to conquer the crisis. As a responsible country, China would discharge its responsibilities."

Mr Zhang said China set great store in relations with Germany and pledged to enhance bilateral ties, as the two countries have no geopolitical disputes, and both sides will benefit from cooperation. He said that China would like to create favorable conditions for German companies.

Mr Zhang also spoke highly of Mr Wulff's efforts in promoting cooperation and exchange between Lower Saxony and Chinese provinces, pledging to contribute more to the development of China-Germany friendship.
Mr Wulff, who is also vice chairman of the Christian Democratic Union, said the steady development of China's economy was vital to mitigating the economic volatility. He said that China was an important factor for stability.

Mr Wulff said though there was some friction between the two sides, but Germany wanted to see the steady development of China-Germany ties.

Taiyuan Steel taps high strength container plates

It is reported that Taiyuan Iron & Steel Co Ltd has succeeded in finding a HR container plate waterproof packing scheme and developing high-strength container plates, further meeting the diversified requirements of customers.

As the largest container producing base in the world, China accounts for over 90% of the global container production. However, the competition from the container manufacturing industry is more and more fierce and many producers in the world see enhancing the strength of the containers and reducing the steel-consumption and costs as one of the most important measure to improve their own competitiveness.

Taiyuan Steel started high-strength container plate's research from Sept after realizing the potential demand of customers. They worked out the chemical components independently and then drafted a careful trial-produce plan which got success during the national day holidays.

Pangang produces 0.59 million tonnes of crude steel in September

Pangang Daily reported that Pangang Group has been active in optimizing resources deployment, improving product mix and strengthening the linkup of production, transport and sales and trying to achieve normal operation to counter the steel market weakness starting since the third quarter.

As per report, in September, the Sichuan based steel group realized pig iron production of 0.59 million tonnes, crude steel production of 0.59 million tonnes, HR coil/sheet production of 0.21 million tonnes, CR coil/sheet production of 35,400 tonnes, large sections production of 0.17 million tonnes, seamless steel tube/pipe production of 0.12 million tonnes, vanadium pentoxide production of 198 tonnes, titanium pigment production of 3,664 tonnes. Of which, production of converter steel, HRC, large sections, seamless steel tube/pipe and vanadium pentoxide keeps at a normal level.

Chinese foreign debt rises to USD 427 billion through June

According to the China’s State Administration of Foreign Exchange, China's outstanding foreign debt was at USD 427.43 billion through June up by 14.4% than the second half of 2007. The figure excluded the foreign debt of Hong Kong, Macao and Taiwan.

The administration added that of the total, medium and long term foreign debt stood at USD 162.07 billion up by 5.56% from the end of 2007.Short term debt was at USD 265.37 billion an increase of 20.57%.

China newly borrowed USD 19.51 billion of medium and long term foreign debt in the first half up 26.91% from the same period last year. The nation paid back USD 8.77 billion of principal on medium and long term debt in the first six months down by 20.28% from a year earlier. In addition, it paid back USD 1.92 billion in interest on medium and long term debt up by 10.23% YoY.

Sinopec Fujian ethylene project to come on stream in Q1 2009

It is reported that he Fujian ethylene project of Sinopec is scheduled to come on stream in the first quarter of 2009. Construction of the project is scheduled for completion by the end of this year.

To satisfy China's fuel oil demand, Sinopec earlier planned to double the project's capacity between 2010 and 2015.

The Fujian project is a joint venture of Sinopec, Exxon Mobil and Saudi Arabian Oil, with Sinopec and local Fujian Provincial Government taking 50% and the other two foreign partners holding 25% respectively it is designed to process 241,000 barrels a day.

PetroChina expects CNY 3 billion gains from new technology

It is reported that PetroChina expects to see new economic benefits in polyethylene production of three billion Yuan a year thanks to the adoption of a new technology.

As per report, PetroChina Daqing Petrochemical has installed a test unit that feeds buytlethylene as raw materials and is able to annually produce 5,000 tonnes of polyethylene annually

Slowdown may lead to output cuts by Russian steel majors

It is reported that Russian steel major MMK is contemplating cutting production amid a drop in demand for steel and uncertainty in financial markets, while Novolipetsk, another top producer, said it is considering a similar reduction.

MMK, or Magnitogorsk Iron & Steel Works, Russia's third largest steelmaker, has cut its planned output for October to 850,000 tonnes a reduction of at least 15% and could lay off workers as construction firms freeze new projects and carmakers predict slowing sales.

Mr Vladimir Shmakov VP of MMK said that "We have only got orders for 600,000 tonnes.”

He said that “We can not lend the rolling as we ourselves have to buy the raw materials. We can't export either as the prices for both ferrous and nonferrous metals have dropped sharply."

SeverStal to set up steel plant in Asia possibly India

PTI reported that Russian steel giant SeverStal will invest more than USD 6 billion in an Asian country, possibly India, to set up a steel production unit.

Mr Alexei Mordashov CEO of SeverStal's was quoted by the Financial Times as saying that the company would be prepared to invest more than USD 6 billion to start a steel production unit in an Asian country, possibly in India, Indonesia, Thailand, or Vietnam, in the next few years.

He said that we have spent USD 6 billion in plant investments and acquisitions in the US in expanding our position there since 2004. We are ready to spend at least as much as this to develop presence in Asia.

SeverStal, if it chooses India, would be the third leading global steel producer after POSCO and ArcelorMittal to invest in the country. At present, its combined annual production capacity stands around 20 million tonnes.

Ukraine reports 5.6% fall in steel pipe output

Ukrainian Journal Staff quoted Ukrtruboprom, the Dnipropetrovsk-based pipe manufacturers association, as saying that Ukraine has reduced steel pipe production 5.6% YoY in January to September to 1.926 million tonnes including 203,200 tonnes in September.

The Khartsyzsk mill, one of Ukraine's biggest producers, is mainly responsible for the overall drop in production.

Ukrainian steel industry needs government support to survive

It is reported that Ukraine Ministry of Industrial Policy announced details of a decline in metallurgical output and the start of a production crisis in the industry.

About half of all blast furnaces went out of production. While the amount of finished products in storehouses reached the level of one-month's production.

On account of this news the Ministry of Industrial Policy and the largest metallurgy plants will discuss the situation today. We recall that in 9M2008 the output of cast iron decreased by 0.53% YoY both steel and rolled steel output fell by 0.98%YoY.

Millennium Capital analyst said that “We consider that the situation needs the support of the government, as any interruption in metallurgical output may hurt domestic economic growth. According to our estimates growth in metallurgy contributed around 60% to growth in manufacturing and around 20% to GDP growth. Any fall of metallurgical production in Q4 2008 will lead to a decrease in metallurgical output by around 3%YoY in 2008E, which may deteriorate GDP growth by around 60 bp, changing the forecast of 2008E GDP growth from 6.6% to 6.0%. Therefore, we think that it is essential for the government to consider recovery measures to support metallurgy, such as reducing railway tariffs, provision of tax benefits and provision of subsidies for natural gas purchase.”

(Sourced from Millennium Capital)

Severstal investments in US to hit USD 6 billion

RIA Novosti reported that Russian steel pr