Bhubaneswar: The slump in demand for steel could hurt Odisha’s interest, a mineral-rich state.
According to a report in Business Standard, JSW Steel is reportedly not inclined on bidding aggressively for the iron blocks in Odisha in the upcoming auction.
The report quoted a JSW Steel official as saying it is unlikely to pay a premium for the Odisha blocks, as it bid aggressively for iron ore blocks in Karnataka last month.
“Odisha had a huge supply potential of iron ore but there is a sluggish demand in the market to consume such a large quantity. Therefore, there is no question of paying a premium in the bidding process,” the official said.
The bidding starts in the third week of August and eight mines with reserves of 573 million tonnes could come up for auction, the report said.