'Foreign investors with modern tech welcome in steel sector'

The government has welcomed foreign investors with modern technology to set up steel plants in India as the country aims to increase the output to 300 million tonnes (MT) by 2030.

"If somebody comes with a new technology with any joint venture or some company from abroad wants to put their plant they are also welcome," Steel Minister Chaudhary Birender Singh told PTI.

"The ministry is quite open to this. Any transfer of technology will be welcomed. May be they can have joint ventures, they can have MoUs," the minister said.

The government aims to more than triple the crude steel output in the country from current 97 MT to 300 MT.

"In such a situation they would be coming with a new technology....In this sector even 100 per cent FDI is allowed.

So they have all their funds utilised for that. That means this would also serve to have sufficient FDI...Our target by 2030 is 300 MT. We are going to create this capacity," the minister said.

In 2016-17, India's crude steel production was at 97.385 MT, registering a growth of 8.5 per cent over the year-ago period. SAIL and ArcelorMittal have already inked a pact to set up a Rs 5,000-crore auto-grade steel plant. The joint venture is in final stage and is progressing fast. It will produce high-end steel based on latest technology.

In March, the steel minister had said that SAIL and ArcelorMittal will resolve differences over setting up of this plant.

The two companies had inked a pact in May 2015 to explore the possibility of setting up an automotive steel manufacturing unit under JV arrangement.

The proposed JV will construct world-class facilities that will offer technologically advanced steel products for India's rapidly growing automotive sector.