India's steel production can rise to 500 M tonnes by 2050

India's production of steel might double to 500 million tonnes by 2050, roughly four times the current output, as New Delhi strives to support its apparent economic ambitions with quick capacity expansion for the principal infrastructure alloy. According to Vandana Pant, chief commercial officer (CCO) of BHP, the multinational mining corporation, which supplies energy needs for the second-largest steel sector in the world after China, may be a significant growth partner as India increases its output to support rapid economic growth.

The primary raw material needed in the making of steel is met coal, also known as coking coal, and India is totally dependent on imports to meet this need. "BHP supplies about 36% of India's need for met coal. It's a sizable sum. Pant stated that BHP supplies one out of every three tonnes of the met coal that India uses.

About 40% of the met coal portfolio owned by BHP, the largest natural resource mining corporation in the world, is exported to India. It's a significant partnership for both us and India, according to Pant. India is one of BHP's top three markets for sales. "And India's growth is just beginning, so I think this is just the beginning."

India produced over 125 million tonnes of steel in FY23, and New Delhi intends to increase that number to 300 million tonnes by 2030. India can generate about 240 million tonnes of steel in eight years, or treble its current output, even after taking a little haircut. "We believe that India has a lot of iron ore that is of a very high quality, making it a great asset for Indian steel plants. But met coal is not something that would be available in terms of quality or quantity.