Buoyed by higher demand from domestic steel makers, sales and production of state-owned iron ore miner NMDC touched a record high of over 30 million tonnes (MT) in 2013-14.
Production and sales of NMDC never touched the 30 MT-mark since it was incorporated in 1958.
Production of the key steel-making raw material rose by 11.31 per cent over the previous fiscal to 30.1 MT, said a source at the country’s largest iron ore miner. NMDC had produced 27.04 MT iron ore in 2012-13.
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Similarly, sales rose 16.22 per cent to 30.8 MT in 2013-14, from 26.5 MT on higher demand of the raw material from domestic steel makers, he said.
After reaching 29 MT in 2008-09, production and sales had fallen to 25.1 MT and 27.4 MT in the subsequent years.
The source attributed the rise in production to better evacuation system that NMDC has put in place.
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The company had been facing evacuation problems from its mines in Chhattisgarh and Karnataka earlier which was holding back its output growth.
NMDC is enhancing its iron ore capacity to 48 MT from 32 MT now. The expansion would be gradually commissioned from June and completed by December this year.
During the April-February period of last fiscal ended March 31, NMDC’s sales rose 17 per cent to 27.43 MT.
Production increased to 26.42 MT from 23.52 MT.