JFE will not up hike stake in JSW Steel - Mr Seshagiri Rao

Thursday, 23 Feb 2012

CNBC-TV18 reported that Mr Seshagiri Rao the joint MD and group CFO of JSW Steel has told that there is no plan today that JFE will increase their stake in JSW beyond 15%.

During an interview with CNBC TV18, while answering to question “Debt levels still remain quite high and JFE Steel a couple of weeks back raised some stake in your company. Now that they have the headway to go all the way up to 25%, is that an option that you may consider in order to bring in higher participation from them and perhaps more cash as well to de-stress the balance sheet”, Mr Rao said “Today, the balance sheet of JSW is not stressed at all. If we look at the overall consolidated debt as on December 31, it was 1.08:1. This is taking into account the FCCBs which we raised as debt only. So balance sheet wise we are quite okay.”

He added “We have 11 million tonne installed and an operating capacity as part of JSW. We don't need any additional equity to come into the company. As per the current agreement with JFE, their overall equity holding is restricted to 15%. They have recently enhanced only to reach the 15% threshold. Otherwise, there is no plan today that JFE will increase their stake in JSW beyond 15%.”

(sourced moneycontrol.com)

Indian Supreme Court panel moots market rates for Karnataka iron ore

Wednesday, 08 Feb 2012

Iron ore miners and consumers in Karnataka, including NMDC, the country's largest iron ore producer and JSW, India's largest private sector steelmaker, will have to grapple with higher costs and lower production if the Supreme Court accepts the recommendations of a panel set up to probe illegal mining in the state.

NMDC and JSW may have to pay a higher price for iron ore while other smaller and regional players, such as Mysore Minerals and MSPL, may lose some mines.

In a series of sweeping and unprecedented recommendations, the Central Empowered Committee has recommended the cancellation of 49 licences and proposed capping the state's annual production at 30 million tonnes. It has said even captive iron ore will be sold at market rates and called for all ore, from old mines as well as new, to be auctioned. But the silver lining for steelmakers will be the opportunity to grab leases when they are auctioned after cancellation.

JSW will henceforth have to buy ore at market rates even from the Thimmappangudi mine, in which it has 70% share. State run Mysore Minerals, which has supply arrangements with Mukand and Kalyani Steel, will lose a mine and will have to excavate the remaining five iron ore blocks on its own.

NMDC in addition to being penalised will lose 10% of its revenue towards a mining infrastructure development fund. MSPL, despite its long public crusade against illegal mining during the Reddy brothers' raj, will also lose one of its five mines.

Sesa Goa's plans to enhance capacity to 10 million tonnes per annum in Chitradurga will be curtailed as the limit for the Chitradurga/Tumkur district has been fixed at 5 million tonnes per annum.

The Supreme Court, which has accepted all of the CEC's recommendations so far, is likely to hear the matter again on Friday.

(Sourced from ET)

JSW seeks WB CM help to secure iron ore supply

Monday, 16 Jan 2012

ET reported that curbs on mining iron ore in Orissa and its movement between states have stymied JSW Steel's proposed INR 35,000 crore steel project in West Bengal, forcing its chairman to seek the intervention of chief minister Ms Mamata Banerjee.

Mr Sajjan Jindal told ET recently that "I have requested Ms Banerjee to look into the issue of inter state transfer of ore. We want market linked access and the CM has promised to take it up with the Centre.”

JSW’s steel cum power project at Salboni has been granted land and coal linkage. It was to source iron ore from private miners in Odisha, but plans went awry when the Mr Naveen Patnaik government clamped down on mining after irregularities came to the fore.

(Sourced from ET)

India's JSW joins state firms in seeking coal imports

December11, 2011

* NTPC, MMTC seek coal for utilities
* Gujarat Electricity to tender shortly
* Port stockpiles fall to 8-10 mln T from 12 mln

LONDON, (Reuters) - India's JSW Steel, part of the Jindal Group which makes steel and sponge iron, has joined state firms National Thermal Power Corp. (NTPC) and MMTC in issuing a tender to buy imported thermal coal, suppliers participating in the tenders said.

India's state utilities are suffering an acute shortage of fuel as domestic coal supply has fallen short of targets and as logistical constraints have hindered the transport of imported coal to where it is most needed.

Coal producers and traders hope this need will translate into higher imports and spot buying of South African and Indonesian coal in 2012.

"There are several quite large tenders in the market now, seeking coal for the next fiscal year until March 2013, and everybody is waiting to see the result," one of India's major trade importers said.

"There's been very little spot buying, but there are some tenders, such as Jindal's," a South African exporter said.

Some state utilities that have so far never used imported fuel may do so in the next fiscal year, which means NTPC and MMTC may issue more tenders, Indian traders and overseas coal suppliers said.

Indian end-users in the cement and sponge iron sectors also are relying increasingly on imports, but at present they can buy at competitive prices because there are high stockpiles in traders' hands at many ports..

Stockpiles are now estimated at 8-10 million tonnes, down from 12 million last month, Indian traders said.

JSW is seeking one 75,000 tonne shipment of South African, Australian, Russian, Colombian or Indonesian coal for delivery in January, for use in its captive power plant.

The coal must be between 5,850-6,000 kc/kg net as received, but Indonesian coal of 5,500-6,200 kc/kg gross air dried can be offered with a complete specification.

NTPC's tender for 4 million tonnes of coal for import during 2012 has closed and will be awarded by Dec. 23, traders participating in the tender said.

MMTC, meanwhile, is seeking 1.35 million tonnes, also for 2012, and Gujarat Electricity Board (GEB) is expected to issue a similar-sized tender before the end of December.

(sourced Reuters)

Tata Said to Consider Bidding for Australian Coal Miner New Hope

Friday, Nov 4, 2011

Tata Group, India’s largest business entity, may bid for New Hope Corp., the Australian company valued at A$4.9 billion ($5.1 billion), to secure thermal-coal mines, three people familiar with the plan said.

Tata Steel Ltd. (TATA), India’s largest producer of the alloy, and Tata Power Ltd. may jointly make an offer for Ipswich, Queensland-based New Hope, said the people, declining to be identified because discussions are at an early stage. Both Tata Steel and Tata Power require coal to run their plants.

New Hope, which operates the Acland coal mine and an export terminal, is profiting as demand increases from power producers in China and India. JSW Steel Ltd. (JSTL), India’s third-largest producer of the alloy, may make an offer, two people with knowledge of the plan said Oct. 24.

The price of thermal coal, used to produce electricity, is likely to gain in the next two years because of Asian demand, Credit Suisse Group AG said last month.

Tata Steel spokesman Prabhat Sharma declined to comment. Tata Power spokeswoman Shalini Singh didn’t respond to mobile- phone calls and an e-mail seeking comment.

New Hope may attract interest from BHP Billiton Ltd. and Rio Tinto Group, according to Ord Minnett Ltd., as well as energy suppliers in Japan, which is facing a power shortage after the worst nuclear disaster in a quarter century. The miner said on Oct. 5 that selected groups will be invited to submit offers in a process that is likely to take months.

Globally, coal deals gained have reached $35 billion this year, against $21.8 billion in the same period last year, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.

India, the world’s third-largest coal user, had 31 power plants with four days’, or “super critical,” stockpiles on Nov. 1, compared with 10 on Sept. 1, according to the Central Electricity Authority. The normal level should be 15 to 30 days, the state agency said. Overall, the average inventory at India’s 89 coal-based plants was six days. The average at China’s biggest plants was 20 days.

(sourced Bloomberg)

Jindals' Salboni project faces iron ore crisis

Sat,Oct29,2011 |TNN

KOLKATA: Supply crunch of iron ore has cast a shadow on Bengal's showpiece project - Sajjan Jindal's integrated steel and power plant at Salboni in West Midnapore.

JSW officials have informally requested the state to help them procure iron ore from National Mineral Development Corporation's mines in Orissa and Jharkhand. JSW Bengal got three coal blocks in state dispensation route, Kulti, Ichapur and Sitarampur in Raniganj belt and the estimated combined reserve is over 600 million tonne.

Incidentally, the project is also facing land hurdle as mutation for the entire land (4,334 acres) is still pending. The company officials would meet state industries minister Partha Chatterjee and West Bengal Industrial Development Corporation (WBIDC) managing director Nandini Chakraborty on Saturday where the issue is likely to be discussed.

However, the only silver lining is that NMDC has not ruled out the possibility of limited iron ore linkage for the project. JSW Group is now planning to set up a 3 million tonne steel plant and a 300 MW power plant with an investment of Rs 20,000 crore in the first phase. NMDC chairman and MD, Rana Som, told TOI that it has got a couple of mines in Orissa where the production is not fully tied up. It has also got prospecting license for a big mine in Jharkhand. "There is no request so far from JSW for its Bengal project. We are supplying iron ore to other JSW projects," he added.

It's not only the JSW Group alone. Several other steel firms across the country have been facing iron ore shortage for the last few months. The Vijaynagar plant of JSW Steel is running at less than 50% of installed capacity of 10 million tonne.

Incidentally, WBIDC had sought clarification from JSW Bengal Steel regarding issues relating to the size of Salboni project for sourcing iron ore in September. JSW Group had given a reply to that letter

a couple of days ago. There were indications that WBIDC would start processing necessary clearances for Salboni project once it receives the clarifications. However, sources added that some grey areas still remained even after the reply.

JSW made this request to the state after the WBIDC asked it to specify how it would source iron ore and location of handling and

whether it is planning to set up any pallet plant in Bengal. It has also raised question about the location of the power plant proposed by JSW Bengal Steel. "The power plant was originally planned in Andal. As per the the approved feasibility report, the capacity of the Salboni project would be 6 million ton. The Expert Committee of Steel of the state government approved this quantity earlier," a source said.

(sourced TOI)

JSW coking coal output may drop this year

Tuesday, 27 Sep 2011

Poland top coking coal miner JSW could see a drop in output to 12.5 million tonnes this year from 13.3 million tonnes in 2010

An accident earlier this year forced a cut in production at one of JSW's mines, but the miner expects output next year to rebound by 1 million tonnes following the restart of production on one of its walls.

Mr Andrzej Tor Deputy Chief Executive said "Despite unfavourable events in the first half of this year our actions will allow JSW to return to proper levels in the fourth quarter."

(Sourced from Reuters)

Indian consortium hoping to be preferred bidder

Thursday, 08 Sep 2011

The bid submitted by a consortium of Indian steel and mining companies, led by Steel Authority of India Limited, for mining concessions of the Hajigak Iron Ore Mines located near Bamiyan in Afghanistan is among the six bids opened by the ministry of mines of Islamic Republic of Afghanistan.

Structure of Indian consortium
SAIL - 20%
NMDC - 18%
RINL - 18%
JSW - 16%
JSPL - 16%
JSW Ispat - 8%
Monnet Ispat & Energy - 4%

The consortium has bid for all the four blocks at Hajigak offered by MoM, Afghanistan. Announcement of preferred and reserved bidders is expected to be made by Afghanistan on or about October 4th 2011.

As per the Request for Proposal issued by MoM, Afghanistan there will be total and annual exploration expenditure requirements over at least a three year period with annual minimums of USD 5 million or more. Bids will be evaluated on various parameters related to bidding company's credentials and benefits accruing to Afghanistan such as royalty, commitment towards corporate social responsibility, etc. Emphasis has been laid on development plans which proposes expansion from iron mine/processing facilities with transport assets to vertically integrated processes including making steel. However, the weightage assigned to individual parameters has not been disclosed by the MoM, Afghanistan.

Upon receiving the news of bid opening, Mr CS Verma chairman of SAIL said that "This is the first time that Indian public and private sector companies have come together to jointly bid for an iron ore asset abroad. With Afghanistan holding strategic interest for India, we hope that our endeavor to obtain mining licenses there will be a stepping stone towards the larger objective of contributing to the much-needed economic growth of the country. This will pave the way for more such collaborative efforts in the future by Indian companies for obtaining raw material assets in other countries."

The five other bids submitted by parties from various countries for the include ACATAC, LLC of the USA (3 blocks), Behin-Sanate Diba of Iran (4 blocks), Gol-e-Gohar Iron Ore of Iran (1 block), Kilo Goldmines Ltd. of Canada (1 block) and Corporate Ispat Alloys Ltd of India (1 block).

CIL bid to develop old coal mines delayed

Tuesday, 06 Sep 2011

ET reported that Coal India is considering switching to a global open tender mode for developing its abandoned mines, a development that could inordinately delay the project. CIL was hoping to float these joint ventures by the middle of 2010.

Coal India is seeking to develop some 18 old mines with a total reserve of 1.6 billion tonnes of high quality coking and thermal coal under joint venture arrangements with global underground mining companies.

It had sought preliminary expressions of interest and had short listed 10 companies. The short listed firms included ArcelorMittal India, Rio Tinto, Titan Mining Company, JSW Steel, JSW Energy, Monnet Ispat, Essar Mineral Reserves, SNT Mining and Sunflag Iron & Steel. CIL had received between six and 10 applications of interest for every mine offered under BCCL and CCL jurisdiction, while for ECL it was between 2 and 7.

But since CIL drew no response from them in the first round of tendering, it was forced to relax some conditions in the second phase, which is now under way. However, if this round also fails, the company may go for open global tendering, a process under which anybody can bid and there will not be any preliminary short listing.

A CIL was quoted as saying that "It has now been decided that if the second round of tendering also yields no result, open global tendering route will be resorted to.”

The manager said that "None of the interested parties responded to the notice inviting tenders for joint ventures. Rather, some of the parties gave some suggestions for softer tendering conditions. Those suggestions were examined and accepted to the extent possible. The second round of limited tendering is in process.”

The abandoned mines include 6 of Eastern Coalfields, 8 of Bharat Coking Coal and 4 of Central Coalfields mines.

(sourced from ET)

Japan JFE says aims to boost ties with India's JSW

Mon Aug 22, 2011

TOKYO Aug 22 (Reuters) - JFE Steel Corp , the world's fifth-biggest steelmaker, said on Monday it would strengthen its ties with India's JSW Steel Ltd by either boosting its stake in the company or increasing its presence on the smaller firm's board.

Under so-called 'equity-method' accounting rules, JFE could report part of the Indian company's net profit in its consolidated results if it holds more than 15 percent of its stock or has representation on its board of directors.

"We hope to make JSW an equity-method company of our group," Eiji Hayashida, president of JFE Steel, told the Nikkei business daily in an interview on Sunday.

"I have told (managing director Sajjan) Jindal about our intentions and we have had no negative response so far."

JFE last year spent about $1 billion acquiring a 14.9 percent stake in JSW, India's No.3 steelmaker, in an attempt to gain a foothold in the fast-growing Indian market.

The stake, just shy of the level that would have triggered a mandatory public offering at that time, was JFE's first major capital investment in a foreign peer.

Hayashida also said in the Nikkei that JFE planed to join JSW's project to build a new integrated steel mill in India and that it was in talks with management on its ownership ratio.

"Our ownership will be below 50 percent," he said, citing potential difficulties for a foreign company in managing large numbers of local workers.

Indian steel industry plans mega investment on iron ore pelletization

Wednesday, 13 Jul 2011 |BS

BS reported that to address the several restrictions on iron ore exports, many mining and steel companies have decided to invest in the processing of low grade iron ore into pellets, the processed raw material used for making steel.

With the restrictions, steel and mining majors such as JSW Steel, Essar Steel, Ispat Industries and NMDC have decided to invest in making pellets to feel steel plants. Their combined plans total INR 8,000 crore in the next four years, to establish pelletisation capacity of 40 million tonnes a year.

Mr Haresh Melwani CEO of H L Nathurmal & Co a Goa based iron ore miner and exporter said that “The industry requires INR 20,000 crore to process the entire amount of exportable fines, which looks impossible at this point in time unless steel mills take an aggressive initiative.”

Mr RK Sharma secretary general of FIMI said that “The government is inviting a big risk by forcing iron ore miners to set up pelletisation plants to convert iron ore fines into pellets. Despite incurring a cost on conversion, miners are unlikely to get adequate remuneration, as pellets need to compete with high grade iron ore. Steel mills may prefer to use lumps instead of pellets at a premium.”

The Indian government has already levied 10% ad velorem royalty on iron ore mining and this is likely to be doubled. Also, the proposed changes in mining rules call for an amount equal to the royalty to be paid for the welfare of project affected people. The government has also levied a 20% export duty.

Closure of mining operations may hit steel output in South

By Mahesh Kulkarni, | Business Stanadard

Chennai/ Bangalore:

The latest report of the Central Empowered Committee (CEC) to the Supreme Court recommending the closure of mining operations of 21 mining companies in Bellary-Hospet region is likely to have a far-reaching impact on the domestic steel industry.

The closure of these mines may result in a shortage of about 5-10 million tonnes of iron ore for domestic steel mills in south India.

The CEC, on July 4, recommended the suspension of mining operations by 21 companies. With this, mining will be halted by 29 companies. Last month, the CEC had recommended the closure of mines by six other companies.

However, the CEC is yet to complete its survey of 60 other mines and it has been granted additional time by the Supreme Court.

Once it completes the survey of all mines, it may recommend the closure of mining by many other companies, the sources said.

Out of about 150 operating mines in Karnataka, about 51 mines are already closed as a result of ban on exports. Of the remaining 99 mines, 27 mines have been asked to stop operations, leaving only 72 mines in the business. The mining industry estimates that finally only 40 mines may be left in the business, which means that the supply of iron ore to domestic steel mills will come down by about 5 million metric tonnes.

Presently, the mining companies in Karnataka supply about 25 million tonnes to domestic steel mills. “With the suspension of mining by 29 companies and assuming that the supreme court orders suspension of mining by a few other companies, the supply of iron ore to domestic steel mills will be affected severely. Already, exports from Karnataka have been stopped completely and the new development would be a big blow to the industry,” Basant Poddar, managing director, Mineral Enterprises Limited said.

He said as against the supply of an average 25 million tonnes iron ore to steel mills from Karnataka mines, the steel industry may expect about 15-20 million tonnes, which is about two-thirds of the demand. The demand from steel mills in south India is about 30 million tonnes annually.

Presently, in Karnataka alone, as many as 16 steel mills, including JSW Steels Limited, Kalyani Steels Ltd, Mukand Steels Ltd, Kirloskar Ferrous, VISL Bhadravathi, MSPL Ltd, BMM Ispat Ltd and Sathavahana Ispat among others source iron ore from Karnataka-based iron ore mines. Many other sponge iron manufacturers in Tamil Nadu and Goa also source iron ore from Karnataka.

“The operations of domestic steel mills will be severely affected with the shortage of iron ore from Karnataka as these mills cannot afford to shut down their furnaces,” industry sources said.

The total installed capacity of 16 steel mills in Karnataka is estimated to be 19 million tonnes per annum. Another 14 mills are in the pipeline and the total installed capacity would go up to 46 million tonnes.

The requirement of iron ore from all these mills is about 33 million tonnes.

2 Indian steel major hike flat steel prices - Report

Friday, 03 Jun 2011

Press Trust of India reported that two leading steel makers, JSW and Essar Steel, have hiked rates for flat products by INR 600 per tonne to INR 1,000 per tonne.

The report cited some company officials as saying that “On the back of rising input costs and strengthening of international prices over the last couple of weeks, there is a case for upward revision of steel prices.”

The report added that However while SAIL has kept prices at last month's levels, TATA Steel is yet to decide on any move. (sourced from PTI)

Poland could float coal miner JSW as early as May

Sunday, 30 Jan. 2011By Geoffrey T. Smith and Marynia Kruk
DAVOS, Switzerland (Dow Jones)--Poland could float state-owned Jastrzebska Spolka Weglowa SA, the European Union's largest coking coal miner, as early as May this year, though the structure of the stake sale is still to be determined, the undersecretary of the treasury, said Friday.

"We're testing various scenarios aiming to float sometime around May or June," Krzysztof Walenczak told Dow Jones Newswires during an interview at the annual World Economic Forum. The initial public offering of JSW could be the largest on the Warsaw Stock Exchange in 2011, though analysts' valuations of the company vary widely, from six billion zlotys ($2.1 billion) to nearly PLN16 billion.

Coking coal has become a hot commodity lately, especially after floods in Australia's Queensland state hit output of the commodity which is mixed with iron ore in blast furnaces to produce steel. Australia provides about two-thirds of all seaborn coking coal.
Poland is in the midst of a privatization drive which is aiming to raise at least PLN15 billion from asset sales this year, after having raised PLN22 billion last year, according to the Treasury Ministry's website.

JSW's valuation could be buoyed by interest from a potential "natural" acquirer from across the border, Czech-based coking coal producer New World Resources (NWR.LN), Pawel Puchalski, an analyst at BZWBK in Warsaw, said Friday.
NWR, which already has two existing projects in Poland, launched a failed takeover bid for Lubelski Wegiel Bogdanka SA (LWB.WA), Poland's only listed coal miner, last year. The company has been able to seek acquisitions because of improved cash flow on soaring demand for coking coal by central European steel makers.

However, JSW's trade unions would likely oppose a bid by NWR. Analysts say JSW could cut about a third of its headcount if it upgraded the equipment it uses the way NWR has.
JSW's Chief Executive Jaroslaw Zagorowski was quoted as saying in state news agency PAP in early January that the listing could be worth between PLN3 billion and PLN5 billion, with the Treasury retaining a 51% stake and employees receiving shares.(sourced:Dow Jones Newswires)

Coking Coal Contract Price May Rise 33% on Australian Floods

Courtesy news via Bloomberg by Ben Sharples - Jan 5, 2011 6:30 PM GMT+0530

Steelmakers in Asia may be forced to pay as much as 33 percent more for hard coking coal after the worst floods in 50 years in Australia’s Queensland state disrupted output from the world’s biggest shipper of the fuel.

Prices may increase to $270 a metric ton for three-month contracts starting April 1 as the floods threaten to take as much as 10 million tons of metallurgical coal out of the market, Colin Hamilton, a London-based analyst at Macquarie Group Ltd., said in an e-mailed response to questions. Daiwa Capital Markets analyst David Brennan said prices may jump to $300 a ton. Mills agreed to pay $225 a ton for the three months starting Jan. 1, Bank of America Merrill Lynch analysts wrote in a report last month.

Rain in Queensland, where waters have inundated an area the size of France and Germany, has prompted BHP Billiton Ltd. and Rio Tinto Group to declare force majeure, a legal clause that allows mines to miss deliveries. About 37 percent of the world’s traded coking coal is affected, according to Macquarie. Floods in Queensland in 2008 left steel producers, including Japan’s Nippon Steel Corp. and JFE Holdings Inc., with a threefold increase in annual contract prices to about $300 a ton.

“Queensland accounts for the majority of the premium hard coking coal supply on a global seaborne basis,” Alex Tonks, a commodity strategist at Bank of America Merrill Lynch in Sydney, said by telephone. “A lot of operations have been impacted. It certainly looks pretty bad at this stage.”

Flooding is also affecting thermal coal, used by power stations, driving the price of supplies at the port of Newcastle in Australia’s New South Wales, the benchmark for Asia, to the most in 27 months. Prices jumped 3 percent to $126.10 a ton in the week ended Dec. 31, the most since Oct. 2008, according to IHS McCloskey, a Petersfield, U.K.-based provider of coal data.

Monthly Contracts

Coking coal suppliers traditionally hold annual talks with steelmakers to fix benchmark contracts for the 12 months from April 1, the start of the Japanese financial year. BHP has urged the industry to move to short-term deals to make prices more responsive to market changes. It agreed with JFE Holdings to the first three-month accord in March last year.

Steelmakers may agree to monthly pricing for coking coal, as proposed by BHP, in a “price spike environment” rather than locking in $300 a ton for a whole quarter, Macquarie said in an e-mailed research note Jan. 4.

“We’re moving away from that quarterly contract pricing,” Daiwa’s Brennan said from Melbourne. “I can see that BHP wants to go to monthly. When I say $300 a ton that would be for one month in April for example, but not for the three months.”

Port Stockpiles

Coal stockpiles at Gladstone harbor in Queensland are “very low” after flooding shut a rail network, Craig Walker, acting chief executive officer of Gladstone Ports Corp., said yesterday. Eighteen ships are waiting to load and 12 more are expected at the harbor in the next 10 days, he said.

“The flooding will provide further upside to international coal prices and a floor to Chinese prices,” Helen Lau, an analyst at UOB-Kay Hian Ltd., said by telephone from Hong Kong. “It’ll easily take six to eight weeks, in a blue-sky scenario, before Australian supplies return to normal. Maybe it’ll take three to four months.”

Australia shipped 259 million tons of coal for steel and power in 2009, the World Coal Association said on its website.

Global steel demand is forecast to reach a record 1.34 billion tons in 2011, the World Steel Association said in October. The biggest producers are in China, which account for about 45 percent of the world’s production.

‘Sufficient Supplies’

Tata Steel Ltd. said it increased purchases in December in preparation for the adverse weather. The Mumbai-based company, India’s biggest producer of steel, ensured it had sufficient supplies, Managing Director H.M. Nerurkar said Jan. 4 by phone.

JSW Steel Ltd., India’s third-biggest producer, also imported a higher quantity of coking coal in December in anticipation of the rains in Australia, from where it gets the bulk of its supplies, Chief Executive Officer Vinod Nowal said in a Jan. 4 interview from Mumbai.

China Steel Corp.’s costs for coal increased by $10 million because of the flooding, Executive Vice President Chung Le-min said Jan. 4 from Kaohsiung, Taiwan. Taiwan’s biggest maker of the metal bought spot coal from Russia and Canada because some Australian suppliers were unable to make deliveries, he said.

About 98 million tons of capacity to produce steelmaking coal is under force majeure, equivalent to 73 percent of Queensland exports, Macquarie said. The floods have resulted in 10 deaths and the displacement of about 200,000 people in Queensland, according to the state police.

Australia is the largest producer of coal used in steelmaking, contributing more than 40 percent of the global seaborne trade, according to Deutsche Bank AG. The country is the second-largest exporter of the commodity after Indonesia.

To contact the reporter on this story: Ben Sharples in Melbourne at bsharples@bloomberg.net