India is considering a strategy to increase domestic scrap production

India’s Ministry of Steel is stepping up efforts to increase domestic supplies of ferrous scrap. This is reported by SteelOrbis.

The ministry is even considering creating a permanent interdepartmental body to coordinate the actions of various industries to expand the scrap procurement base, which is currently mainly based on the automotive sector.

Currently, India covers 25% of its scrap needs through imports. Therefore, government officials are seeking to attract sectors with high potential for the production of this raw material, such as engineering, consumer goods, etc.

The Ministry of Steel has initiated talks with other agencies to formulate a strategy. The move comes amid proposals to restrict scrap exports to the EU and other countries.

Currently, according to government regulations, owners are offered incentives to scrap vehicles that have reached the end of their useful life. The relevant ministry is considering extending the scheme to other sectors that could provide additional scrap generation.

Industry leaders, according to the Economic Times, also note that attention should be focused on increasing the procurement of this raw material.

Sanjay Mehta, President of the Materials Recycling Association of India, noted that there is an urgent need to shift attention to the recycling of consumer goods at the end of their life cycle. Akshaya Gujral, Executive Director of Downstream Operations at ArcelorMittal Nippon Steel India, said that ship dismantling centers in India have significant potential to increase the utilization of their capacities.

As GMK Center reported earlier, in April 2024-February 2025 (11 months of FY2024/2025), India increased imports of rolled steel products by 15.8% compared to the same period of the previous fiscal year, to 8.98 million tons. Exports of finished steel products decreased by 33.7% y/y – to 4.4 million tons. Thus, the country remains a net importer of rolled steel, most of which is imported from South Korea and China.