SAIL eyes exports to Japan, Korea

Expands basket to add finished steel

Look east: Recently, SAIL received an order to supply 5,000 tonnes of wire rods to Japan’s Funabashi port.

Buoyed by a recent order that it has won in Japan, Steel Authority of India Ltd.(SAIL) is now aiming to increase exports to the country as well as to Korea. The steelmaker has now widened its product portfolio to export finished steel.

This is in tune with SAIL’s new marketing policy which aims at increasing its footprint in overseas markets, senior officials said. “Recently, SAIL received an order for supplying 5,000 tonnes of wire rods for Japan’s Funabashi port,” a company official said, adding that the material will be used for meshing and other purposes. Alongside, SAIL is also exploring the Korean market. It has already won an order for HR coils to Vietnam.

The firm exported about five lakh tonnes of steel between April and November 2017 valued at ₹1,400 crore. This marks a 16% growth in value.

Traditionally, SAIL has been exporting semi-finished steel such as billets and slabs and also some finished steel products such as plates and HR coils. Destinations include the SAARC countries, Europe and some southeast Asian countries.

Of late, India’s largest steel producer has expanded its export product basket to include blooms, CR coils, wire rods, TMT and structurals. The Japanese order is being serviced from SAIL’s IISCO steel plant.

Africa, Philippines

It is also exploring markets in Africa, Philippines, Indonesia, Thailand and Vietnam.

“India is now better positioned to tap export markets of developed countries due to upgrades in technology that the Indian steel industry has undergone over the last decade,” Sanak Mishra, former secretary general of the Indian Steel Association said.

A SAIL official said this was part of its revamped marketing policy that rests on distributor-centric sales, increased share of value-added and customised steel in the product basket and a wider global footprint.

“With the stabilisation of most of our new and modernised mills, we are diversifying our product basket with value-added and ready-to-use products. SAIL will introduce new and niche brands also,” company chairman P.K. Singh had said after an interaction with his marketing team.